Successful Start to Schools in Region Four

Schools within the parishes of St. James, Hanover and Westmoreland got off to a successful start on Monday (Sept. 4), with 159 of 161 institutions re-opening.
Regional Director for the Ministry of Education and Youth’s region four, Vincent Guthrie, said he was pleased with the preparations for the new academic year.
“I am pleased to say that the startup of school for this year has again proven to be fairly successful in region four. With the exception of one or two little glitches, you could say that we performed very well, and I am satisfied,” he told JIS News.
He informed that the problems, which had prevented the re-opening of two institutions had been ironed out, and they would be ready to accommodate students today (Sept. 6).
The 161 public schools in the region comprise 25 high schools, 15 primary and junior high, 58 all-age, 58 primary and five infant schools.
The Regional Director credited the successful re-opening to the yearlong preparation of technical and administrative officers within the region.
In addition, he informed that administrative personnels were identified to replace those who had retired, boards of management were put in place, teachers were hired, and repair and upgrading work carried out, including the provision of furniture along with other necessary equipment.
Mr. Guthrie appealed to parents to ensure that the children attended school regularly. “My first word of advice would be to make all the possible arrangements to ensure that the students come to school regularly. This is one of the biggest problems we have in the region, poor attendance of students,” he stated.
He also advised parents to make use of school feeding programmes, noting that the meals provided were inexpensive and nutritious.