Food For The Poor Opens First Basic School Under Its Jamaica 50 Campaign

       Ellerslie Pen, Spanish Town, St. Catherine | Tel.: (876) 984-5005 | www.foodforthepoorja.com

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

MEDIA RELEASE

FOOD FOR THE POOR OPENS FIRST BASIC SCHOOL UNDER ITS JAMAICA 50 CAMPAIGN

Education Sector Leaders Emphasize The Need For Greater Partnerships In Education

Kingston, Jamaica – September 21, 2012: Food For The Poor (FFP) yesterday officially opened the St. Margarets Real Success Basic School on Wildman Street, Kingston – the first Basic School to be built under its Jamaica 50 Campaign, in commemoration of the island’s Golden Jubilee. The event marked a major milestone for the Campaign which was launched in June this year at High House District in St. Catherine, aimed at building and or upgrading 50 early childhood institutions within 50 months.

Addressing participants at yesterday’s official opening ceremony, Andrew Mahfood, Chairman, Food For The Poor Jamaica assured that the charity is committed to helping to provide each pre-primary child with an opportunity to gain education of the very highest quality. Pointing out that the FFP Jamaica 50 Campaign was born out of a desire by his organization to improve the life of the nation’s children in the three to six age group, Mr. Mahfood said, “There is indeed no better way to celebrate the first 50 years of our island’s independence and to assist in advancing development for the next fifty years, than by creating a legacy of easier access to education.”

Deacon Ron Burgess, Senior Director - Recipient Services, Food For The Poor, extends welcome during the official opening of the St. Margarets Real Success Basic School at Wildman Street, on Thursday, September 20, 2012. Seated at the head table (from right) are: Andrew Mahfood, Chairman, Food For The Poor Jamaica; Rev. Hon. Ronald Thwaites, Education Minister; Hon. Steadman Fuller, Custos of Kingston; Marisa Dalrymple-Philibert, Opposition Spokesperson on Education; Professor Maureen Samms-Vaughan, Chairman, Early Childhood Commission; Charmaine Gooden Monteith, Secretary – Professional Services, Jamaica Teachers Association (JTA) and Merna Jackson, Principal, St. Margarets Real Success Basic School

The FFP Jamaica Chairman also expressed the wish that the over 40 children who attend St. Margarets Real Success Basic School would enjoy the best possible learning experience, and “that this will be the springboard for their future success.”

He also announced that within a week, FFP would be opening two other schools under the Food For The Poor Jamaica 50 Campaign – Long Hill Basic School in Westmoreland and Greenvale Basic School in Manchester.  Thereafter, at least one school will be opened each month, for the remainder of the 50 months.  “We will be replacing schools which have been deemed as unfit spaces for children to learn, and we will also construct new schools,” stated Mr. Mahfood. “The Basic Schools are being built in communities where the Early Childhood Commission, in consultation with Food For The Poor, has identified the most urgent need for pre-primary facilities.”

Each school will be able to accommodate between 40 and 100 children. The new St. Margarets Real Success Basic School features two large classrooms (which can be subdivided into additional learning spaces), a sickbay, office for the teachers, kitchen, and sanitation area.

Mr. Mahfood called on citizens to be active partners in the education process: “Let us do more to encourage discipline among our children. Let us do more to cultivate and encourage a more engaging learning environment for our youth.”

In delivering the Keynote Address, Rev. Hon. Ronald Thwaites, Education Minister, said the institution would be upgraded to an Infant School to enable it to benefit from public sector funding, and advanced training for teachers. Mr. Thwaites also promised that a ‘green area’ would be created adjacent to the school, to serve as a recreational area for adults and children.

Education Minister Rev. Hon. Ronald Thwaites (right) declares the St. Margarets Real Success Basic School open, during a ribbon cutting exercise at the official opening ceremony for the school on Thursday, September 20, 2012. Participating in the ribbon cutting exercise are Andrew Mahfood, Chairman, Food For The Poor (FFP) Jamaica and Merna Jackson, Principal

Minister Thwaites said the government will be pushing ahead to upgrade the quality of teachers in Basic Schools islandwide: “Do you know that of the nearly 2,000 basic schools in Jamaica, less than 20 percent have a trained teacher? We have to change that. The best teachers must be teaching in the Basic Schools.” He promised that during October, the Ministry would be placing additional teachers in early childhood institutions. The Education Minister also disclosed that by December, his Ministry would be putting two hundred new special education teachers into early childhood and primary schools.

Also addressing yesterday’s event, Opposition Spokesperson on Education, Marisa Dalrymple-Philibert, commended FFP, while issuing an appeal for more civic organizations to be involved in supporting the education sector. “I invite other members of civil society to join in this partnership to invest in our children,” appealed Mrs. Dalrymple-Philibert. She also recommended the introduction of a “parents-place” at St. Margarets Real Success Basic School and other educational institutions. This would be an area at the school designated for parents to access counselling, have meetings, benefit from parenting programmes, give support to school projects and interact with children and teachers.

Custos of Kingston Hon. Steadman Fuller welcomed the efforts of FFP in providing a new education facility on Wildman Street, and commended the charity for its plans to upgrade the training of scores of basic schoolteachers.  He appealed to parents and guardians to play a greater role in the education of their children and to be “good stewards” of the schools. 

Representatives from Food For The Poor and St. Margarets Real Success Basic School beam with satisfaction after unveiling the school-sign during the official opening of that Wildman Street educational institution on Thursday, September 20, 2012.

His comments had resonance with Professor Maureen Samms-Vaughan, Chairman, Early Childhood Commission. While stressing the importance of partnerships in education, she explained that the partnership required that the stakeholders take their responsibility seriously. “Parents, part of your responsibility as partners require that you attend PTA and contribute to the work of the school…communities also need to support the school and help with the upkeep of the facility. “

The Jamaica Teachers Association (JTA), which represents over 23,000 teachers islandwide, has endorsed and complimented the FFP Jamaica 50 Campaign.

Charmaine Gooden Monteith, Secretary – Professional Services, JTA, who brought greetings on behalf of the JTA President Clayton Hall, said her organization “applauds Food For The Poor for always supporting education.”

She reiterated that investments made in children, beginning at birth, are direct investments in our island’s sustainable development. “In order for us to be true global citizens, we have to improve our literacy and numeracy rate and our education system in general – What better way to do it than to strengthen the early childhood system so that there will be very little need for remediation at the other levels of the system as a solid foundation would be laid,” remarked Mrs. Gooden Monteith.

(From left) Charmaine Gooden Monteith, Secretary – Professional Services, Jamaica Teachers Association (JTA), Professor Maureen Samms-Vaughan, Chairman, Early Childhood Commission and Merna Jackson, Principal conduct the ribbon cutting ceremony for the classrooms, during the official opening of St. Margarets Real Success Basic School

Merna Jackson, Principal, St. Margarets Real Success Basic School expressed appreciation, on behalf of the school community for the new facilities, which have been provided by FFP. The students of the institution also entertained the audience. Tracy-Ann Grant, a trainee Pharmacist at the tertiary level, who is a Beneficiary of FFP Educational Programmes, shared her success story with the audience at yesterday’s opening ceremony.

Minister Thwaites greet students of the St. Margarets Real Success Basic School on Thursday, September 20, during the official opening of the school. Looking on are: Marisa Dalrymple-Philibert, Opposition Spokesperson on Education (right-seated), and a member of the audience. 

The FFP Jamaica 50 Campaign is a part of the ongoing support by the charity to address the socio-economic challenges in Jamaica. Since its inception thirty years ago, FFP has made a significant contribution to Jamaica’s education through the payment of school fees to needy students, distribution of school furniture and supplies, the construction of 51 basic schools since 2006, and the upgrading of sanitation facilities at schools.

____________________________________________________________

Contact:

Erica James-King, PROComm, T: 926-6740 or 564-5277

Petri-Ann Henry, Food For The Poor, T:  984-5005 or 564-2886