Parents at Flipper International School are pushing back against a proposed 60% tuition increase, accusing the administration of coercive decision-making and unfairly linking the fee hike to efforts to keep the school’s Lancha campus open.
The dispute intensified during a meeting held late last weekend, when guardians from the Summit campus and other branches said they were presented with a choice they described as “take it or leave it”: accept the increase or face the immediate closure of the Lancha, or Beklo Bet, campus. Parents said the process was legally flawed, emotionally coercive and designed to force approval through pressure rather than consultation.
According to several parents, the proposed increase is not limited to the headline 60%. They said it is being combined with a separate “harmonization” adjustment meant to narrow gaps between tuition levels across grades, pushing some families’ total costs far higher. One Summit campus parent told Capital that some households could face total increases of more than 120%, with annual fees rising from around 60,000 Birr to more than 130,000 Birr.
Parents said the school offered three options at the meeting: “harmonization only,” “harmonization plus 40%,” and “harmonization plus 60%.” They said the last option was strongly favored by the administration, even though many families viewed it as unaffordable and unjustified.
“We are not talking about a few thousand Birr,” one father said. He accused the school of presenting the rise as necessary for teacher salaries and facility improvements, while failing to deliver on earlier promises. Parents cited an earlier pledge to spend $1 million on a computer lab, saying they have yet to see the promised equipment.
The school’s move has also raised procedural concerns. Under Ethiopia’s education directives, schools are required to notify parents about tuition changes three months before the end of the academic year, submit detailed justifications, secure the agreement of the Parent-Teacher Committee and obtain support from at least 51% of parents before approaching the relevant authority. Tuition is also expected to be payable in at least three consecutive installments.
Parents say those requirements were not followed. They complained that the administration declared the majority had agreed, despite nearly 200 parents walking out in protest. They also said Lancha campus parents were effectively forced to approve the hike out of fear that their campus would otherwise be shut down, and that the resulting decision is now being imposed on families at other campuses.
The financial impact, parents said, is severe. Once the proposed increase is combined with existing harmonization charges, some families could see tuition rise by 110% to 120%. Parents argue that asking for such increases while previous commitments remain unfulfilled has destroyed trust between families and management.
Summit campus parents have reportedly refused to sign the agreement and have formally raised the matter with the Education and Training Authority. They said the authority has assured them it will intervene if the school is found to have acted outside the rules. Some parents are also preparing to take the matter to court if the school does not enter into fair negotiations and provide quality assurances.
In written notices sent to parents, the school indicated it intends to proceed with the new fee structure. Capital submitted questions to school management, but no response was received by the time of publication.
