The Vivien Vanterpool Primary School at Is
land Harbour reopened on Monday, September 7, with a new facelift – thanks to a few persons in the community who were willing to work freely for the common good.
The painters, the day before the reopening of the school, were former Elected Representative in District 1, Mr. Othlyn Vanterpool, Ivan (Jack) Richardson and Clement Rogers.
“The work crew, under the leadership of Mr. Othlyn Vanterpool, came to freshen up the school because the last time it was painted was in 2009. It looks very nice and I really appreciate the young men for their assistance,” the Principal, Mrs. Mavis Fleming-Drakes, told The Anguillian.
The paint was supplied by Pastor Evan Brooks of Brooks & Sons. “He has also been a very good contributor to the school and we will be talking about that later,” the Principal said. “He is the person who gave us the paint which is being paid for by volunteers from the community. It means that when the children come on Monday, the school will have a fresh look.
Meanwhile, so far, the school’s compound has been enhanced with the national colours of Anguilla and a decorated wall at the entrance. “That was a project done by students in the Sixth Grade for the Hello Tourist Programme,” Mrs. Fleming Drakes, who was transferred from the Adrian T. Hazell Primary School a year ago, explained.
“We are going to continue the work and Digicel is going to participate in that,” the Principal, who is also known for her tenacity and commitment, stated. “The company is also going to help to define the school by painting some tyres which we will be using for decorations and flower gardens. The entrance to the school [will be further beautified] with the help of Monique Webster (a parent), Teacher Estelle and all the other teachers who will finish up the wall and, as I said, Digicel will also be participating.”
With respect to the functioning of the school, Principal Fleming-Drakes said: “This year we are focusing on comprehension, writing and reading. Based on our scores, we want to expose the children to several different kinds of genre. We have therefore ordered books through Digicel’s funding, while the company is also helping to fix the environment giving it a welcoming ethos.”
She added: “One of the first activities we will be having, to highlight the children’s reading, will be a reading award ceremony. It is going to highlight all the national tests: the Reading Test from K – 2 and the MacMillan Test from 3 – 6. This will be done on the evening of the first of October. It will be sponsored by the Hunte’s family including Amy and Teacher Pansy. They will be doing the awards ceremony in memory of their mother, Mrs. Thelma Hunte, who was an astute person in this community…The awards ceremony will be an annual activity.”
