By Francine Black, Staff ReporterTWO MONTHS into the new academic year, some schools in the poorer areas of Kingston are yet to receive furniture supplies promised to them by the Ministry of Education.
Everton Jones, principal of Denham Town Primary, said that the principals of primary schools in the inner-city were told that they would get new furniture, but are yet to receive any of the desks.
As a result they have had to come up with creative seating solutions.
"I was lucky in one way and unfortunate in another," he told The Gleaner. "I received an influx of grade one students and I had many graduates from grade six, so we had to move around the furniture as best we could to try and accommodate the smaller ones," he said.
Just down the road at another inner-city primary school, the principal attempted to deal with the shortage by asking parents to bring chairs for their children. Otherwise, they were denied admittance.
"At the start of the school year, I had no desks for the students. I had to ask parents to take chairs for their children to sit on and if they cannot do so, we have to turn them away," he said.
NO CONTACT
He said he has tried to contact the Ministry about the situation but the phones sometimes ring without an answer or he gets a busy signal.
Principal Jones, who represents all the inner-city schools on the Inner City Initiative Steering Committee, established by the Ministry of Education, said the reports from other schools have been much the same.
But according to public relations officer, at the Ministry of Education, Edwin Thomas, delivery of the furniture has been ongoing since the start of the school year. Mr. Thomas could not say, however, on what basis the schools were being supplied, neither could he provide information on how many schools have received furniture.
