Through cooperation with parents, teachers, and the general school community the headmaster arranged the finances for a school development program. He made the school management system as transparent as possible in order to obtain the parents’ trust. He then strove to improve communication between parents, teachers and students. Within the development program he created as many extracurricular programs as possible in order to meet student and community needs.

As a result of these initiatives, the participation from teachers and students in school management increased. The headmaster introduced a new style of social management to teachers and parents. He created committees involving every stakeholder in the school development process. All committees had a collegial relationship. Coordination was managed by one of the deputy headmasters. In some cases where student issues were involved they participated on the committees and worked with the teachers. The formation of teacher representatives was initiated to improve class participation. Students are also involved in discussion and planning of special events or occasions such as religious holidays.

The headmaster believes that top-down management should not be applied at the school level. He delegates responsibilities to the four (4) deputy headmasters and also to the teachers. Teachers and staff all have the right and responsibility to bring forward any ideas that may result in the improvement of the school environment. An example of teacher responsibility is that they are responsible for resolving problems at the classroom level. If the issue cannot be resolved at the classroom level one of the deputy headmasters should then be engaged to address the problem. If the problem is still unsolvable, then the headmaster is finally consulted. This approach frees the headmaster from becoming too involved in many minor school and classroom issues. At the same time, it gives more responsibility to the teachers and the deputies and empowers them solve classroom problems which appears to enhance their workplace satisfaction.

Overall the school has experienced development in a number of areas. Students have become more active in the classrooms. Teacher attendance has increased. Teacher and staff welfare and their working conditions have improved as well. The school's facilities have also improved. Two new buildings were built to increase the number of classrooms, the library itself was improved through the availability of BP3 and Dikmenum funds, and library's book holdings have also increased.

The headmaster attributes the formulation of the concepts for all the school improvements to the headmaster training that he received in Surabaya in conjunction with his previous experiences in other schools. The three most important things he learned from the in-service training were:

• 1. The cultural organization of management.
• 2. Knowledge of how to get support.
• 3. Information on how teaching improvement is implemented in schools through methods, media, administration and class management.

The facilities have been improved and four new classrooms and a meeting room have been built. In an effort to improve the library, teachers have contributed books and magazines to supplement the library resources. These additions helped address the teachers’ concerns for improving instructional resources. Also, to support religious education a library was added to the mushola. In Spring of 1999, an internet connection was established but training is still needed to access and use this resource for supporting instructional programs.

School development initiatives were developed to address a number of other management issues. Class size was limited to not more than 40 students. The current Intensive English Training and Computer Training programs that were planned by the former headmaster have been implemented. Other extra-curricular activities including youth activities and activities to introduce employable skills were increased to meet the students’ various needs for both for academic and vocational tracks. One example is the retention of skills training (ketrampilan) courses that were previously offered during the 1984 curriculum. Electrical appliance repairs has been continually offered as a morning option since 1995/1996 as part of the physics curriculum. Non-teaching staff receive an additional stipend for skills training to support their work. As a result, they become more enthusiastic towards work and cooperate more effectively with teachers and parents.

The headmaster is credited with the introduction of many positive changes in the school. Although this school has had several headmasters, the present headmaster has been the most successful in the area of change management. He encourages teachers to be creative and gives responsibility to the staff, and provides training to support their work. He invites participation from all the stakeholders in decisions related to school matters.

Teacher attitudes have improved significantly and teacher attendance has increased. They have become more supportive of students and enthusiastic for teaching. Through the headmaster’s encouragement they have become more aware of creative methods of instruction. When attempting new approaches in the classrooms teachers are responsible for providing sufficient effort to truly evaluate their effectiveness. Approaches that are tried and found not to be effective are discontinued, while effective approaches are encouraged and supported by the headmaster. This has resulted in a more professional attitude towards teachers and has contributed significantly to improving instruction within several subject areas. Teachers are pleased with opportunity to try-out or test new theories and enjoy being at school, often till late in the afternoon. There is a sense of community among the teachers now. Those teachers who are interested in a Masters (S2) degree are supported by school administration.

Student attitudes likewise have improved positively. Students now stay longer at school, although the availability and limitations of transportation and the weather limits their time. They have the opportunity to gain skills training in English and computers and enjoy participating in the extra curricular activities that have been increased under the present headmaster’s leadership. The students’ participation in religious activities has also increased, and more female students now wear traditional Muslim attire. Students now are given more opportunities to complete academic studies in Yogyakarta.

In general the students are very encouraged by the developments in the school and enjoy their experience there. They are disappointment when the headmaster does not appear at Monday’s ceremony. The students hope that communication within the school will continue to increase.

Teachers are actively involved in community activities. They donate money and their rice allotments to the poor population in the community. The community provides sponsorship to support school competitions in English language. In some cases, teachers provide adult education or special instruction in primary schools such as teaching about nutrition. The level of trust that exists between the community and the school is demonstrated by the fact that students who forget the bus fare in traveling to the school are allowed to pay the bus driver at a later time. The community also offers the school security by monitoring students and unwanted visitors.

The sports facilities, such as the football field and the tennis court at the school are open to the community. At the same time, the school utilizes the community hall for the BP3 meetings, religious activities and sports activities. A volleyball court is rented by the school and used by all schools in the area.

Parents’ participation has increased. They have shown more interest in the programs proposed by the school. This is partly because the prestige of the school has increased to the same level as SMU 1 Wonosari during the last three years. Parents and teachers meet and review the students’ progress once per cawu at least. Most of the parents have received a limited education and they view education as preparation for work. Surprisingly, about 40% of graduates from SMU No.2 Wonosari continue on to a university. It is interesting that there is an almost even division between students desiring to go to a university and those pursuing employment after graduating. Parents have shown support for the both of these options. Teachers expressed that it is important that parents need to be informed of the benefits of continuing education for the children.

The parents have increased interest in BP3 activities since the current headmaster has assumed school leadership. A planning meeting is held once a year for parents and teachers with a special emphasis on new parents. Programs are proposed by the head of the BP3 during the annual meetings and the parents vote on which programs they want to support for the year. A committee is then formed which consists of the headmaster and the BP3 leaders to follow up implementation of the selected programs. The committee meets every three months to monitor the progress of the programs being implemented. Parents are then informed of the program developments and of any new proposals through the mail. In the case of proposals being submitted, parents are asked to respond by sending their responses and recommendations to the school via the students. This has resulted in responses by the parents as high as 75%. Proposals can come from the parents by proposing them directly to the head of the BP3. Those proposals which are related to the operation of the school are put forward by the head of BP3 to the headmaster. If the headmaster agrees, then the proposal will be followed-up by the school. If the headmaster disagrees, parents can still request a vote on the proposal through the BP3. Alternatively, teachers can make proposals to the deputy headmaster, then inform the headmaster. This then is submitted to the head of the BP3 for approval.

The Monetary Crisis has had an impact on the parents’ ability to contribute to the school. When the school was first opened, parents contributions were Rp.80,000 per year. Since then, the yearly contribution increased to Rp.200,000 per year, however, last year the contribution dropped to Rp.150,000 per year. Families with more than one child at the SMU pay just one fee. Also, arrangements are made for families with financial difficulties. In addition, the BP3 provides scholarships for poor families.

The headmaster has been instrumental in promoting school development. He has accomplished this by showing support for teachers and concern for students. Regarding teachers, the headmaster has focused on their social conditions and improving the instructional capacity of the school. He has provided uniforms and has demonstrated a personal commitment to the teachers. To support the educational programs, the headmaster has provided funds for resources such as audio-visual equipment and computers, has given the teachers more responsibility for upgrading course materials. He has emphasized the role and significance that teachers play in educating the students. Teachers now have a sense of freedom to be creative in the classroom. In general, teachers feel they have a partnership with the headmaster in trying to improve the quality of instruction.

The headmaster has generated student interest in education by focusing on the students’ needs. Whether it is the pursuit of a university degree or vocational employment after graduation, the new programs at the SMU have been received very positively. Special training programs for EBTANAS were created two years ago with the teachers being paid from the school budget. Extra-curricular activities have been added which support both academic and skills development such as the intensive English language training program and the computer training program. Also, student problems are being addressed directly to teachers and deputy headmasters.