Top CAPE History Student With Sickle Cell Pursues Her Dream

Former educator, Booker T. Washington, once said: “Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome.”

On examining the life of top Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) History Unit 2 student and St. Andrew High School for Girls past student, Melissa Blair, this statement rings true.

Ms. Blair has faced her fair share of challenges in life, enough to derail one’s educational pursuits, but remains determined as she works towards her goal of becoming an attorney-at-law.

As a sickler, Ms. Blair has had many battles with the disease from childhood, with her most recent being early 2022.

One of the defining moments of her childhood was fighting the disease just before sitting her Grade Six Achievement Test (GSAT) examinations in 2014 and being hospitalised along with her mother and sister.

“Melissa was the first one to come out and when she started back school she was still having pain in her legs, but we had crutches and Melissa would use her crutches to go to school because she wanted to be at school,” Hugh Blair, father of Melissa, shares with JIS News.

The then 11-year-old Melissa had to catch up on her lessons and prepare to sit the GSAT exams in roughly a month. Then, tragedy struck when her mother passed away just days before her first GSAT exam.

“I had to orchestrate something, because I could not tell Melissa, going into GSAT the Thursday and Friday. So, I had to shield her from that,” Mr. Blair says, though he notes that as a child, Melissa had a sharp mind and was headstrong and determined.

This included working alongside Melissa’s teacher at the Excelsior Primary School to shield her from students who knew of her mother’s passing, retrieving her from exams early and providing excuses why she could not call and speak with her mother.

“I was aware that she was sick, but I was of the impression that everything was going to be OK; she would come out of the hospital and everything would be fine. During the exams I was thinking about her, if she was okay and when is she coming home and trying to focus on the exam as well. And, I was having a sickle-cell crisis on one of the days of the exams, so that was very difficult for me. It was so bad that the Principal had to come at around 15-minute intervals to walk me around the block,” adds Ms. Blair.

She shares that after her mother’s passing, she became nonchalant while attending St. Andrew High School for Girls, as she was without focus and prioritising entertainment over academics.

However, an older schoolmate put it into perspective for her as to how poor grades would impact the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) subjects available to her in grade 10.

Ms. Blair buckled down in Grade 9 to avoid being given subjects she did not want to pursue and discovered an aptitude for History.

“I liked History and selected it as a subject that I wanted to do in CSEC and in grades 10 and 11. I had very good History teachers. They were just so passionate about the subject that it made me passionate about it as well. My teacher for grades 12 and 13, Mrs. (Karen) Brown-Chambers, was also very passionate about the subject as well,” she says.

However, despite finding a subject she loved and doing a good job of balancing extra-curricular activities and academic studies, Ms. Blair still had some challenges to overcome.

“There was a time she had to be hospitalised while in high school because of the pain from sickle cell. She did swimming at the time – they teach it at the school – and there was probably a competition that day and she exerted more than normal. She was fine during the day but in the night, it was severe, excruciating pain and I could not touch her, hold her or lift her up and I had to get her to the hospital via ambulance,” recalls Melissa’s father.

Once back in school, Melissa settled into her classes while catching up on what she had missed on her own time. She went on to secure a Grade 2 in her 2019 sitting of CSEC Caribbean History and pursued it at the CAPE level. After sitting the 2020 CAPE Unit 1 examination, Melissa was stunned at her result.

“Unit 1 was a 4. My father was telling me to query it and I probably should have but I was very surprised at that grade. That year we only did multiple choice. We did not do Paper 2 and I actually prefer Paper 2 because in multiple choice there is only one right answer and you can either get it wrong or right but in Paper 2 you can write something, include dates and facts and make up the points,” Ms. Blair notes.

Though disappointed, she approached CAPE History Unit 2 strategically, determined to not let the grade dampen her spirit or to have a repeat of the result. She began preparations for her Unit 2 CAPE exams at the start of the school year with the assistance of teachers and peers who provided past papers and questions for her to practise during her free sessions.

When the results were published by the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC), they revealed that for CAPE History Unit 2, Melissa Blair received a straight ‘A’ profile and was awarded the distinction of a Grade 1.

“I felt so good. It was such a relief to see that grade and my other grades. I was very happy with my grade,” she recalls.

The CXC published the Regional Top Candidates by Subject list and at the top of the leaderboard was Melissa Blair of the St. Andrew High School for Girls in Jamaica.

“I was in my bedroom, and I was just jumping for joy. Even though I got the one, I would never guess that I got a regional placement, and first at that. So, I can’t believe,” says Ms. Blair.

Her father was elated at the news when Melissa shared it and piled on his congratulations, but the jubilant screams came from Melissa’s confidante, friend and History teacher, Mrs. Brown-Chambers, who taught her for the two years prior.

“Melissa’s story is one of resilience and one of triumph. The entire History Department celebrated with Melissa because of all that she overcame, from personal challenges to learning online, moving into COVID and still coming out with the number-one place. It continues to floor me; it is such an outstanding achievement,” shares Mrs. Brown-Chambers.

Ms. Blair’s advice to students preparing for exams is to prioritise schoolwork, avoid procrastinating, make use of resources in the form of past-paper questions, and practise.

She has now matriculated to a tertiary institution in Cleveland, Ohio, United States, where she maintains her positive attitude. Despite still battling bouts of illness, she expresses gratitude through it all.

“I would just like to thank God, my father and my teacher and everyone who supported and helped me along my journey. I could not have made it this far without them,” expresses Ms. Blair.