Hi,
Yesterday my boss unexpectedly told us that she is going to close her small bushiban (50 students) and turn it into a kindergarten. She already has a purpose build kindergarten next door, and she has decided that she can make a bigger profit by having a second kindergarten.
I was quite surprised, especially after signing another 3 year contract with them 4 months ago, but I have been in Taiwan long enough and should not really be that surprised.
Anyway, so we have about 50 students. The local math teacher and I have both worked there for just over a year, and in that time we have worked hard to get a good reputation. We both have new students, some word-of-mouth walk-ins, and some referrals from our current students.
We (the math teacher, the bushiban teacher and I) decided that we want to try and keep the students and open a small bushiban ourselves. It would be a simple arrangement where we share the costs and general duties, but each have our own classroom and take the income from our classes.
It is a gamble, but we hope that by keeping the same teachers, slightly lower prices, and the same timetable, we could keep most of the students.
The students will be told at the end of May, and the school with close at the end of June. This gives us 1 month to get ready and give the parents a 100% secure alternative, and another month before we move to the new location.
In those 2 months we need to find a suitable house to rent, make the required modification, and get a bushiban license.
My husband is busy looking on the internet for the bushiban regulations, and I have just come back from going to all the local real estate agents.
What do you think out chances are?
Does anyone have any advice (other than what has already been offered in the other bushiban threads)?
Most importantly what is a realistic time for making the modification ( I don’t even know what they would be yet) and getting a bushiban license approved?