> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://support.lena.africa/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Academic Structure
> How to set up grades, arms, faculties, departments, academic sessions, and terms or semesters on Lena.
Your school's academic structure defines how students, courses, and academic
periods are organized. The structure depends on your school type (K-12 (primary
and secondary school) or University).
**Before you begin:** You need an existing school on Lena. See [Creating
Your School](/school/creating-your-school) if you haven't set one up yet.
***
## Organizational structure
K-12 schools use a **grades and arms (class sections)** hierarchy.
### Creating grades
Grades represent class levels (e.g., JSS (Junior Secondary School) 1, JSS 2, SS (Senior Secondary) 1, SS 2, Primary 1).
Go to the **School Structure** section in the sidebar → **Grades**. The grades management page appears.
Enter the grade name (e.g., "JSS 1", "SS 3", "Primary 4"). Click **Save** to add the grade.
Create all the grades your school uses.
### Creating arms
Arms are subdivisions within a grade (e.g., Arm A, Arm B, Gold, Silver, Science, Arts).
Click on the grade you want to add arms to. The grade detail view opens showing existing arms.
Enter the arm name (e.g., "Arm A", "Science", "Gold"). Click **Save** and the new arm appears under the selected grade.
Add all arms within each grade.
**Example structure:**
```
JSS 1
├── Arm A
├── Arm B
└── Arm C
JSS 2
├── Arm A
├── Arm B
└── Arm C
SS 1
├── Science
├── Arts
└── Commercial
```
Universities use a **faculties and departments** hierarchy.
### Creating faculties
Faculties are broad academic divisions.
Go to **School Structure** → **Faculties**. The faculties management page appears.
Enter the faculty name (e.g., "Faculty of Science", "Faculty of Engineering"). Click **Save** and the new faculty appears in the list.
### Creating departments
Departments sit within faculties.
Click on the faculty you want to add departments to. The faculty detail view opens.
Enter the department name (e.g., "Computer Science", "Mathematics", "Electrical Engineering"). Click **Save** and the department appears under the selected faculty.
**Example structure:**
```
Faculty of Science
├── Computer Science
├── Mathematics
├── Physics
└── Chemistry
Faculty of Engineering
├── Mechanical Engineering
├── Electrical Engineering
└── Civil Engineering
```
***
## Academic sessions
An academic session represents a full academic year (e.g., "2025/2026").
### Creating a session
Navigate to **School Structure** → **Sessions**. The sessions list appears.
Enter the session name (e.g., "2025/2026 Academic Session") and optionally set start and end dates. Click **Save** and the session appears in the list.
Click **Activate** to set this as the current active session. Only one session can be active at a time. The session status changes to **Active**.
***
## Terms and semesters
Within each session, create the time periods that divide the academic year:
Create terms like "First Term", "Second Term", "Third Term".
Click on the session to view its details. The session detail page opens showing existing terms.
Enter the term name, start date, and end date. Click **Save** and the term appears in the session.
Set the current term as active. Only one term can be active at a time. The term status changes to **Active**.
Create semesters like "First Semester", "Second Semester".
Click on the session to view its details. The session detail page opens showing existing semesters.
Enter the semester name, start date, and end date. Click **Save** and the semester appears in the session.
Set the current semester as active. The semester status changes to **Active**.
The active session and period determine which courses are visible and active
for teachers and students. Make sure to activate the correct session and
term/semester at the start of each period.
***
## Managing structure
### Editing
You can rename grades, arms, faculties, departments, sessions, and periods at
any time. Changes are reflected immediately across the platform.
### Deleting
Deleting a grade, faculty, or department may affect students and courses
linked to it. Make sure no students or courses are actively using the
structure element before deleting it.
***
## Bulk import via Excel
If your school has many grades or departments, you can import your academic
structure from an Excel spreadsheet instead of creating each one manually.
📥 Download K-12 structure import template
Import your entire section/grade/arm structure using a single `.xlsx` file with the following columns:
| Column | Required | Description |
| ------------------------ | -------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Section Name** | Yes | The school section (e.g., "Primary", "Junior Secondary", "Senior Secondary") |
| **Section Abbreviation** | Yes | Short code for the section (e.g., "PRI", "JSS", "SS") |
| **Class Name** | Yes | The class numbers within the section — use commas for multiple classes (e.g., "1, 2, 3") |
| **Arm Names** | Yes | The arms within each class — use commas for multiple arms (e.g., "A, B, C, D") |
Each row creates grades by combining the section with each class name. For example, a row with Section Name "Junior Secondary" (abbreviation "JSS") and Class Name "1, 2, 3" creates grades "Junior Secondary 1", "Junior Secondary 2", and "Junior Secondary 3".
**Example spreadsheet:**
| Section Name | Section Abbreviation | Class Name | Arm Names |
| ---------------- | -------------------- | ---------------- | ------------------------- |
| Primary | PRI | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 | A, B, C |
| Junior Secondary | JSS | 1, 2, 3 | A, B, C, D, E |
| Senior Secondary | SS | 1, 2, 3 | Science, Arts, Commercial |
Use commas to list multiple classes or arms in a single cell. The import creates all combinations automatically — the example above creates 12 grades (6 Primary + 3 JSS + 3 SS), each with their specified arms.
📥 Download university structure import template
Import faculties, departments, and levels together using a single `.xlsx` file:
| Column | Required | Description |
| ------------------- | -------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Faculty Name** | Yes | Faculty name (e.g., "Faculty of Science", "Faculty of Engineering") |
| **Department Name** | Yes | Department within the faculty (e.g., "Computer Science", "Mathematics") |
| **Levels** | Yes | Comma-separated list of academic levels (e.g., "100, 200, 300, 400") |
Each row defines a department within a faculty. If multiple rows share the same faculty name, the departments are grouped under that faculty automatically.
**Example spreadsheet:**
| Faculty Name | Department Name | Levels |
| ---------------------- | ---------------------- | ----------------------- |
| Faculty of Science | Computer Science | 100, 200, 300, 400 |
| Faculty of Science | Mathematics | 100, 200, 300, 400 |
| Faculty of Science | Physics | 100, 200, 300, 400 |
| Faculty of Engineering | Mechanical Engineering | 100, 200, 300, 400, 500 |
| Faculty of Engineering | Electrical Engineering | 100, 200, 300, 400, 500 |
| Faculty of Arts | English | 100, 200, 300, 400 |
To import, click the **Import** button on the structure page, select your
`.xlsx` file, review the preview, and confirm.
* Column headers must match **exactly** as shown above (case-sensitive) -
The file must be in `.xlsx` format (Excel workbook) - Data must be on the
**first (active) sheet** of the workbook
***
## Related guides
* [Managing Students](/school/managing-students) — add students who need to be
assigned to this structure
* [Managing Teachers](/school/managing-teachers) — add teachers to your school
* [Creating Your School](/school/creating-your-school) — initial school setup
and school type selection
* [Glossary](/general/glossary) — definitions of grade, arm, faculty,
department, and other terms