Many parents in Lebanon are looking to transfer their children from prestigious private schools to more affordable ones after being informed by school administrations of an increase in tuition fees by nearly nine times. This increase is justified by the schools as necessary to raise teachers' salaries and cover operational costs amid the severe economic and financial crisis the country has been facing for the past three years. A young woman who spoke to *Asharq Al-Awsat* expressed her dilemma over her children's insistence on staying at their school and their attachment to it, particularly since she prioritizes providing quality education for them. She feels confident that even if she manages to secure the "astronomical" amount requested, she will not be able to meet their other needs. She stated: "We were paying 8 million and 250 thousand Lebanese pounds per child, but now they demand 20 million Lebanese pounds and 1,500 US dollars, totaling around 71 million. I could understand an increase of 10, 20, or even 30 million per student, but such a drastic jump is incomprehensible."
Lebanese laws prohibit pricing tuition fees in dollars and require that school budgets be presented in the national currency. However, many educational institutions have blatantly disregarded these laws, pricing in dollars on the grounds that they will not be able to continue if they stick to pricing in Lebanese pounds due to the continuous fluctuations in the exchange rate, which recently reached around 34,000 pounds to one dollar. Most schools informed parents since the middle of the previous academic year of their intention to impose payments in specific dollar amounts for the upcoming school year. Over three months ago, they distributed new tuition circulars that included both amounts charged in US dollars and those in Lebanese pounds.
Despite repeated assurances from the Minister of Education that pricing in dollars is not permissible in educational institutions, these schools seem unconcerned with the laws, confident that no one will be able to hold them accountable. This is largely due to the ineffectiveness of regulatory bodies in Lebanon, especially given the judicial paralysis caused by the strike announced by judges, who have drastically reduced their operations for over two years.
The Minister of Education, Abbas Al-Halabi, announced after a meeting with the Federation of Educational Institutions that there is acceptance of creating a fund to cover operational costs in private schools, with a firm rejection of expelling any student due to parents' inability to pay the specified dollar amount. He emphasized that these schools must exempt the children of all public sector workers from paying any dollar amounts. The Minister compelled schools to include all external or internal support they receive in their budgets and to account for financial assistance to teachers within the school's budget, stating that development expenses in schools should not exceed 100% of the budget for the fiscal year 2019-2020, while speaking of "legal tools to impose the harshest penalties on violating schools."
Officials in private schools have been pushing to suspend the law, allowing them to price in dollars without facing legal consequences. A parliamentary source told *Asharq Al-Awsat* that "this item was included twice in the agenda of a parliamentary session and we voted it down," stressing that "the push from the administrators of Catholic schools is illogical, illegal, and unethical." The source added, "We requested that any decision to price in dollars be contingent upon obtaining prior approval from parents' committees and that there be a financial audit of each school's accounts, but they refused."
After his meeting with the Minister of Education, Father Youssef Nasr, the Secretary-General of Catholic Schools, stated that "we do not agree to dollarize tuition fees, but the school support fund is obligatory for parents. I take responsibility for what I say before the Ministry of Education; in exchange for this fund, schools are obliged to create another fund to support families unable to pay the tuition fees." He insisted, "Enough of the intimidation; no student will be expelled from Catholic schools due to parents' inability to pay the specified dollar amount. Schools that violate this and force parents to pay in dollars are not members of the Federation of Educational Institutions, and we are the ones demanding the Ministry of Education hold them accountable for such violations."
Meanwhile, Lama Al-Tawil, the head of the Federation of Parents' Committees in private schools, announced absolute rejection of any school forcing parents to pay in US dollars, emphasizing in a statement to *Asharq Al-Awsat* that any fund that school administrations demand to create should be within the school budget and in Lebanese pounds. Al-Tawil added, "Everyone is determined and keen to ensure the success of the academic year, but there are undoubtedly differences in viewpoints; therefore, discussions are ongoing, and a small committee has been formed to continue working on this issue."
