Jonathan Grant High - striving for excellence

Anastasia Cunningham, News Coordinator

Each morning passionately proclaiming the affirmation "I am created for excellence!", for many of the students, Jonathan Grant High School in Spanish Town, St Catherine is their saving grace.

They repeat the mantra so often, it has become ingrained in them to believe and live it.

"I was a lost young man needing guidance, but you saved me. Thanks for being more than a teacher, giving me guidance, motivation, care and most of all love," an emotional past student Glendon Morgan told teacher Joan James last Wednesday, as he joined several outstanding past students who paid tribute to the educators on Teacher's Day.

Such is the sentiment of many of the students who have benefited from the love, motivation, care and support of the teaching staff over the years.

Coming mainly from some of the most volatile inner-city communities in Spanish Town, the students are often faced with violence, gun culture, abandonment and poverty in their home environment. It takes strong dedication, determination, motivation, caring and intervention from the school staff to get them to believe and accept that it doesn't matter where they are from; they are 'created for excellence'.

Getting many students with low-grade averages, disciplinary issues and economic challenges, the school has to employ a number of innovative means to transform their charges into model citizens by the time they leave in five years. And it has worked wonders.

Surrogate mothers and fathers

"Several of the students have great potential but just don't have the means to even come to school sometimes, pay for their exams, find a meal, and this greatly affects their ability to perform. So we personally take care of a lot of them, often from our own pockets. Teachers have become surrogate mothers and fathers for these children," said principal Dr O'Neil Ankle.

"Many nights you will find teachers here with students up to 9 o'clock working with them to get through a subject they are having difficulty with or working on a project. I wish I could find a way to properly incentivize my teachers for their hard work and dedication."

Vice-principal Mary Frank added, "We take time to know the students, know about their lives away from school. So many of them have to work to send themselves to school, we even help to get jobs for some of them. We have to work with them continuously to build their confidence, using the one-on-one approach."

In fact, the students at Jonathan Grant have become so motivated that several of those strong in a number of subject areas are voluntarily assisting and tutoring the weaker students.

With a student population of approximately 2,200 between grades seven and 11, operating on a two-shift system, the 33-year-old school has produced outstanding results despite the challenges. Jonathan Grant has fashioned several high achievers in the fields of sports, banking, medicine, business, entrepreneurship and the military.

In the last two years, the school has also achieved impressive results at the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) level.

Last year, seven students passed 10 subjects; 13 students passed nine subjects; 14 passed eight subjects; 18 passed seven; 17 passed six subjects; 40 students passed five; 41 passed four subjects and 48 passed three subjects.

Despite having only a small land area to work with, agriculture science continues to be the school's strongest subject. In 2011, they had a 98 per cent pass rate among the 50 students who sat the subject in CSEC, while in 2012 the pass rate was 96 per cent among the 27 students who went up.

Strategic approach -building the foundation for success

To get the students to perform at a high level, Jonathan Grant has been implementing a number of strategic operational plans. These include a development reading programme for slow learners; camps for subject areas such as science, mathematics and language; and four student assessments for each school year to guide parents on the performance of their children.

Going forward, they will begin to have students do School Based Assessments (SBAs) from grade seven, in order for them to be well familiar with it by the time they get to the CSEC level.

"I strongly believe in building the lower school if I want to get the work at upper school, so our goal is getting them to improve gradually, so that by the time they get to the CSEC level they will be well prepared and confident to breeze through the exams," said principal Dr O'Neil Ankle.

They will also be putting plans in place to deal with the weak subject areas, such as mathematics and English, which will have an incentive component.

Part of the motivational factor is the school's Honour Society and Class List.

"The students work hard to make these lists and when they do, they wear their badges with pride," said Ankle.

The school also focuses heavily on vocational training, accepting that not all students are academically inclined, but are very good in vocation subject areas such as agriculture science, home economics, art and craft, cosmetology and carpentry. Come September, Jonathan Grant will be introducing auto mechanics.

The school also prides itself on its good parental support and strong PTA.

Ankle said they have a 2016 plan, which includes introducing 6th form and having 90 to 95 per cent of the cohort of grades 10 and 11 past upwards of five CSEC subjects.

These plans form part of the goal and motivational wall that is prominently displayed in the school.

"Every decision made at Jonathan Grant is data driven, I look at the numbers, the raw facts before making any decisions," said Ankle.

With a determined passion to transform the school and the mentality of the students, each day the principal walks the length and breadth of the clean, neat compound, becoming familiar with each child by name and their affection for him has led many to call him 'daddy'.

"Every opportunity I get, I use it to motivate them. My favourite quote to them is 'it is better to be prepared for an opportunity, than if an opportunity comes and you are not prepared'. So once we see they have the potential to make it, we will work with them, whatever it takes. We want them to be qualified to get to the next stage of their lives," said Ankle.

"I tell them, if you come to school for the right reasons, we will help you all the way. I will go out on a limb for my kids. That's how much I love them and love my job. I get up every day with a zeal and enthusiasm to help my kids."

anastasia.cunningham@gleanerjm.com