Sixteen students from the Morris Vanterpool Primary School graduated on Thursday 22nd June, 2023, making it the fifth such graduation ceremony for the island’s six public primary schools. The graduation was held at the Mount Fortune Seventh-day Adventist Church under the theme “Great Ingenuities Lead to Better Opportunities”.
These sixteen students, like those graduating from the other primary schools, will begin their high school education at the Albena Lake-Hodge Comprehensive School in September.
The Chairperson for the ceremony was Pastor David Christmas, and the prayer was offered by Pastor Howard Simon. The music teachers played the National Song, followed by the School Choir rendering the School Song..
In welcoming the audience, Teacher Aaron Adams stressed “We have had seven long years of watching these students grow and finally they have made it to this point.” He gave special recognition to the Honorable Minister of Education, Ms. Dee-Ann Kentish-Rogers, and to the Honourable Leader of the Opposition, Mrs. Cora Richardson-Hodge, as well as Education Officials and teachers.
The Keynote Address was delivered by Ms. Nina Rodriquez, the 2004 Valedictorian of the school. She emphasized the importance of being prepared to enter high school: “High school comes with a lot of pressure and high expectations which can be overwhelming,” she noted.
From a perspective of challenge, she advised the graduates: “In these moments, I want you all to remember that there is no right or wrong decisions. Life is what you make of it, so take risks, do the uncomfortable thing, and remember that it is important to step out of your comfort zone.”
“Confidence is a very strange thing,” she said. “The more you push and challenge yourself to dive off the deep end, the stronger you would become, and the more outgoing and great you will feel about yourself. You will realize that there is nothing you cannot achieve with the right mindset.”
Ms. Rodriquez reminded the graduates that each one of them is special in their own way, and that they must be true to themselves: “I want each and every one of you to realize how special you all are” she said. “You should never be afraid of standing out and being different. This is something that you should constantly remind yourself of. Don’t dim your light for anyone, and don’t feel like you must adhere to someone else’s version of ‘normal’. Just be truly genuine to your authentic self.”
The distribution of Certificates, Gifts and Awards followed including the Oris Smith Valedictorian Award; the Oris Smith Salutatorian Award; the Samuel Webster Valedictorian Award; the Samuel Webster Salutatorian Award; the Colville Petty Valedictorian Award; the Perseverance in Mathematics Award, sponsored by Calvin Ruan; the Perseverance in Science Award, sponsored by Kaiyla’s; the Most Outstanding in Social Studies Award, sponsored by Colville Petty; and the Most Improved in Academics Award, sponsored by Colville Petty.
The Awards’ also included the Most Improved in Academics Award, sponsored by Sylvene Petty; the Citizen’s Award, sponsored by Sylvene Petty; the Most Outstanding Sports Award for Male, sponsored by Franklyn “Teacher Kelly” Richardson; the Most Outstanding Sports Award for Female, sponsored by Laura Richardson; the Morris Vanterpool Award, sponsored by the family of the late Headteacher Morris Vanterpool; the Outstanding Performance in Music Award, sponsored by Justin Richardson; the Perseverance in Music Award, sponsored by Frankie Richardson; The Most Outstanding in Visual Arts Award, sponsored by Canita Ruan; the ICT Perseverance Award, sponsored by the Honorable Jose Vanterpool; the Most Outstanding ICT Award, sponsored by the Honorable Cora Richardson-Hodge; the Most Outstanding ICT Award, sponsored by Smith’s Farm; and the Innovative Award, sponsored by Olapops.
The Valedictorian, Ms. Cynné Liburd, garnered a large quantity of the Awards.
During her speech, she encouraged her fellow graduates, and, on their behalf, extended gratitude to all who had helped them on their journey to this stage of their education:
“Thank you to all our well-wishers for being here,” she declared. “Your presence and support mean the world to us. To our former Principals, Teacher Michael and Teacher Paula, we thank you for your significant influence on our journey. To our current Principal, Teacher Shauna, I would like to say that you have been amazing. You have always gone that extra mile to ensure that we have the best school with all the available resources to enhance our education.”
“Thank you to all our support staff for the role you played in our development,” she continued. “Miss Netta, although you are now enjoying your retirement, you were always the best. You have been patient with us in everything – from making sure that we ate our snacks to putting band-aids on our bruises when we fell on [the] playground, while reminding us to be more careful.”
“A big thank you to our many teachers,” she said. “I know there may have been times when you would have thought long and hard about where we were heading. But we managed to stay on course.”
Then, focusing on their supportive families and relatives, she said: “To our moms and dads, our grandparents. siblings, aunts and uncles, and all our caregivers, we say thank you for always being there when we needed you, and even for the times that we did not think that we did. You supported us in every situation and found a way to provide all of our needs. For all of this we say thanks.”
The Vote of Thanks was delivered by the Salutatorian, Mr. Majih Francis. Teacher Krystal Webster then presented the Class of 2023.
