St. Michael School's Marketing Plan and SWOT Analysis

St. Michael’s School Marketing Plan
Name
Institution
St. Michael’s School Background
St. Michael’s school was founded in 1952 by Catholic nuns in the Antiguan capital of St. Johns. The all-boys’ school original location was in the midst of the most congested part of the city with limited space and land for expansion. The city’s congestion coupled with the lack of adequate land for building more classrooms and other extracurricular amenities accounted for the school’s low enrolment of only nine boys when it opened its doors. The school further lacked sufficient teaching and supporting staff to cater to a large number of students. The available resources were thus dedicated to bringing the best out of the small number of student in both the academic and spiritual perspective. The school registered the highest grades and passes for each grade in the entire city’s school district and has maintained the high standards ever since. The enrolment to the school has somewhat been slow since its opening as 15 years later in 1967 the school’s registry only totalled to 30 male students. The nuns handed over the school’s administration to the Anglican church which shifted its location to its current location in the outskirts of the city of St. John, Antigua.
Mission Statement
St. Michael’s school is an Anglican primary school committed to providing quality education through spiritual awareness. In line with the school’s motto, On the Lord’s side, St. Michael’s mission is to:
-Enhance the students’ development through quality education by insisting on academic excellence and encouraging creative thinking.
-Instil Christian morals and values, encourage adherence to the spiritual teachings of Christ and compliance with the doctrines of the Anglican church.
-Develop an inclusive approach that emphasizes the application of the teachers, students, and parents in advocating for collective servitude to God and humanity by embracing the love of Christ for all.
Vision Statement
The vision of St. Michael’s school is to be the best primary educational center in Antigua and the whole of Eastern Caribbean in a holistic transformation of the students through quality academic and spiritual nurturing by equally competent and qualified staff.
Situational Analysis
Launched in 1952, St. Michael’s school is 66 years old and sits on a 10 acres’ land in Barbuda on the outskirts of the St. Johns, Antigua CITATION Eme14 \l 2057 (Thomas, 2014). The school’s rural location provides for a serene and tranquil environment for studies unlike its original congested location in the city. The school has ample grounds for extra-curricular activity which is equipped with all the necessary amenities for physical education of the students as well as facilitating the administration of other practical studies.
St. Michael’s school has a total of 150 students with enough teachers under the employment of the Anglican Church attending to the boys. The school through the Anglican church is embarking on an expansion mission to extend the enrolment to girls as per the rising demand and request of growing members of the church in the region. Additionally, the institution seeks to start an early education program beginning the next academic year to accommodate the growing demand in the region and unavailability of preschools in the region.
The Anglican church commands a larger following in the region that is predominantly inhabited by Christians of various denominations. The Seventh-day Adventist church also enjoys a comfortable presence in the island followed closely by the Catholic church. The fellowship of Christians in the island corresponds to the parents’ enrolment of their children to the church-sponsored schools that form the majority of private schools in the region. The growing influence of the Anglican church works to the advantage of St. Michael’s school as it seeks to improve or rather increase its enrolment that has been making small increments over the six decades. The school’s administration is dedicated and committed to increasing the enrolment while also maintaining the high quality standards of education that have been the foundation of the institution. The diminishing standards of education in the public primary schools further provide an excellent opportunity for the St. Michael’s school to enrol more students and increase its revenue base CITATION Eme14 \l 2057 (Thomas, 2014).
The tough economic times, specifically the rising inflation in the country, characterized by the high cost of living accounts for the increase in the tuition fees for each grade and the total cost per student. The school is operating at a break-even regarding its finances and thus the necessity to increase the revenue base through increased enrolment.
Marketing Objectives
* 100% match up in enrolment of girls into the institution to match the boys.
* Create a conducive learning environment that unites the students, families, and the public.
* Establish St. Michael’s as the best private primary school in St. Johns and the whole of Antigua.
* Create an inclusive enrolment approach to accommodate children from other Christian doctrines and ensure a high retention rate of the existing and new students.
The objectives are in tandem with the demands of the school’s sponsorship of the Anglican church values, focus on individual student development, social responsibility, and financial independence and flexibility of the institution. Strategies to be used in achieving the outlined objectives include utilizing the Anglican church’s resources, preachers, and other leaders, in spreading the good word for the school. Sensitizing the members of the Anglican church to enrol their children at St. Michael’s and encourage other parents if one has already a member. Involve the school in voluntary programs in the community to familiarize the public with the school and the values upheld by the both the church and the institution. Conduct a parent satisfaction survey and establish a periodic program on the same to maintain the school’s overall educational experiences.
Market analysis
The demand for public schools in Antigua is diminishing at an alarming rate and parents are increasingly becoming involved or concerned with the quality of education their children receive. Private primary schools, especially church-sponsored institution, are gaining popularity with 37.5% of the student population attending the schools sponsored by the three Christian churches, the Anglican, Catholic, and the Seventh Day Adventist church CITATION Hea17 \l 2057 (Americas, 2017). The demand for private primary schools for girls is also on the rise as both the Catholic and the Seventh Day churches sponsor such schools within the region.
Market Needs
As outlined in the demographics, there is a growing need for a comprehensive educational system in the region that incorporates both the spiritual and academic wellness of the students and thus giving a competitive edge to church-sponsored schools in antigoal. Consequently, the demand for special attention to the individual student by the parents is also on the rise as the public schools are have a poor teacher-student ratio. Preschool education is further gaining popularity as more parents join the white-collar jobs and thus preferring early preschool enrolment for their young ones CITATION Eme14 \l 2057 (Thomas, 2014). The positive correlation between the higher tuition fees and positive academic results is also pushing parents to seek private primary education for their children to increase their chances of qualifying to better high schools.
Market Demographics
St. Michael’s targets the middle-income households within region owing to the relatively higher tuition fees charged at the school. Most of the residents of the residents are diversifying from plantation farming of sugarcane and thus increasing their revenue base, which enables them to finance quality education for their children. The middle-class parents in the Island are also seeking high quality education for their children and thus offering an excellent opportunity for St. Michael’s school. The increased moral decadence around the globe and social disorder experienced in various regions in the Caribbean further encourages parents to seek educational systems based on or rather following the predominant Christian doctrines. St. Michael’s establishes itself as a respectable Anglican boy-school with the most disciplined and academically intelligent students as evidenced by their consistency in maintaining exceptional performances in the regional examinations. Admission to Catholic schools is declining at an alarming rate with an equally increasing turnover of students which suits the expansion project of St. Michael’s.
Competition
St. Michael’s school faces stiff competition in the preschool department as public schools have long established themselves as the preferred institutions for early childhood education. The Seventh Adventist sponsored schools have also made a name for themselves in girl education programs especially with the single-sex education that separates the girls and the boys from grades 1 up to grade 5 when they are mixed up in the same class. Parents around the region take to this program claiming it serves to instil moral values to the students at a tender age. St. Michael’s school sets the bar in the quality of education offered in the region and thus counts on the advantage to increase its enrolment and revenue base as well.
Swot Analysis
Strengths
The strengths of St. Michael’s School lie in the following:
* It has been in existence for over 65 years – the school’s existence for over 65 years is a testament to its success and reputation. To be inexistent for more than 50 years and still hold the reputation the school holds is something that has endeared the school to a lot of people. Therefore, whatever the school does often attracts a lot of attention and gets to the public within a short while.
* It is widely known for having high passes, well-disciplined students, very spacious and clean environment – any school that continuously produces students with high grades earns a reputation that never fades from the minds of the public. Aside from the above, the students of St. Michael’s are known to be well-disciplined. Parents are always concerned with the discipline levels of a school before they consider taking their children to a particular school. A majority of them will, therefore, be at peace with taking their children to St. Michael’s. The school is also quite spacious and clean which adds to its resu...