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The Old Boys of Bo School Association (OBBA) is seeking to revive a more than 100-year-old admissions tradition that would give Paramount Chiefs a formal role in nominating students for consideration by Bo School.
The proposal seeks to reconnect the school with an aspect of its early history, when traditional leaders played a role in identifying students for admission.
Mohamed Mubashir Massaquoi, National Secretary-General of OBBA, recently visited the Bo School campus and held discussions with Principal Rev. Kainesie Hassan on the proposed restoration of the nomination system.
According to Joseph Fitzgerald Kamara, the engagement followed consultations between the OBBA National Executive and traditional leaders across Sierra Leone.
Under the proposed framework, Paramount Chiefs would be able to nominate students for consideration by the school administration. The nominated students would subsequently undergo administrative review before being considered by the Board of Governors.
Kamara said Massaquoi and Principal Hassan also discussed the administrative and logistical arrangements that would be required if the historic nomination system is restored.
The discussions further covered preparations for the next academic year, which is expected to begin in early September, with the consultations aimed at ensuring that the school is adequately prepared to receive new students.
The proposal follows a resolution adopted during OBBA’s 97th Annual General Meeting in April 2026.
Bo School was established in 1906 under British colonial Governor Leslie Probyn. According to Kamara, the school’s original mission included educating sons of Paramount Chiefs as well as students nominated by traditional leaders.
As the institution later expanded its admissions to students from broader sections of Sierra Leonean society, the traditional nomination arrangement gradually diminished.
OBBA now wants to adapt the historical practice to contemporary circumstances, arguing that the initiative could promote national unity and social cohesion by bringing together students from different chiefdoms and regions.
Kamara also linked the proposal to President Julius Maada Bio’s vision for national integration, describing Bo School as a potential platform for bringing young Sierra Leoneans from diverse cultural and geographical backgrounds together and preparing them for future leadership through shared educational experiences.
Consultations between OBBA, the school administration and traditional leaders are continuing as the association works towards developing a framework for the proposed system.
According to Kamara, the next stage will focus on establishing procedures for submitting nominations and determining how the school would conduct administrative evaluations.
The initiative, if adopted, would represent an attempt to preserve an important part of Bo School’s institutional history while adapting the traditional admissions practice to the school’s contemporary educational responsibilities.
