WATA initiative helps 14 schools, 42 students with $12M in grants

Acting principal of May Day High School, Pauline Brown-Hanley, is applying lessons learnt from the recent slate of bomb threats which disrupted schools across the island.

Brown-Hanley announced last week, during a luncheon hosted by Wisynco, that some of the funds awarded to her school by Wisynco Group Limited through their WATA Hydrate to Educate grant, will go toward an early warning system (EWS). The EWS, along with protocols and training will help the school population respond quickly to various situations.

This is one of many projects which will be undertaken by one secondary school in each parish thanks to a grant of $300,000 from the Wisynco Group through its WATA Hydrate to Educate initiative.

The 14 institutions are Paul Bogle, Marymount, Jonathan Grant, Mona, May Day, Donald Quarrie, Petersfield, Titchfield, Marcus Garvey, St James, Muschett, Rhodes Hall and Central high schools and the Sydney Pagon STEM Academy.

“This is our second year of hosting the WATA Education initiative which is designed to allow as many students as possible to benefit from a total allocation of our $12-million education fund. We have met principals, students and parents and are tuned in to what is most important to them. Everyone wants our youth to have the best outcomes and we have seen how access to additional financial support can help achieve this,” said Francois Chalifour, director of marketing and business development at Wisynco.

Principals were pleasantly surprised by the invitation to attend a reception hosted by Wisynco without being told the reason. A Hydrate to Educate grant valued at $175,000 was awarded to 42 students across the island, that is, three students per parish. One school per parish, of the three, was selected for the $300,000 grant.

Representing Paul Bogle High, math teacher Gary Fuller said the grant would be used to improve the school plant.

“This is a great surprise and it has come just in time because we are raising funds to improve the entrance to our school. We want to make it more attractive and more secure. This is something we have wanted for a long while, as we believe the attractiveness of the entrance to the school can help set the tone for the students,” Fuller said. “

Donald Quarrie High School intends to use the funds toward improving the space used for guidance-counselling sessions.

Funds for the Hydrate to Educate initiative have come from the sale of commemorative 600-ml bottles of WATA, identifiable by their yellow labels. The limited-edition labels pay tribute to Jamaica’s achievements in sports with a spotlight on the contribution of women. Also featured on the labels is the WATA Give Back Pledge which commits a portion of the returns from the sale of each bottle to an education fund valued at $12 million.