PEP students triumph in State care

One hundred and ninety children in State care are being celebrated for successfully completing the Primary Exit Profile (PEP) examination as they prepare to take the next step in their education.

The children, who were recognised at the Child Protection and Family Services Agency's (CPFSA) annual PEP Awards Ceremony, were drawn from across the island and include children living in residential child-care facilities, foster care, family reintegration programmes and those under supervision orders.

The ceremony was designed not only to recognise their academic achievements, but also to encourage the children as they transition from primary to secondary school.

For many of the children, the occasion was more than a formal presentation of certificates. Parents and guardians gathered to cheer them on as they made their way to receive their awards, with smiles, applause and words of encouragement filling the room.

Among the young awardees were children who have already experienced significant changes in their lives, circumstances that ultimately led to them becoming wards of the State.

Yet, as they sat among their peers, their expressions reflected the significance of the moment. Some beamed broadly as they collected their certificates, visibly proud of what they had accomplished. Others appeared more reserved, with traces of nervousness as they approached the stage and the attention of the room turned towards them.

For a brief moment, however, the challenges that may have shaped their journeys appeared secondary to the accomplishment being celebrated – completing PEP and preparing to walk through the gates of high school.

Dr Diana Thorburn, chairman of the CPFSA Advisory Board, urged the students not to allow one examination result, mistake or disappointment to define their future.

"One bad day does not mean you have a bad future. One bad grade does not mean you are not intelligent. One mistake does not make you a failure," Thorburn told the students.

She encouraged the children to approach high school with courage, discipline and a willingness to seek help when they encounter difficulties.

"You do not have to know exactly what the next five years will look like, and you certainly do not have to know exactly what you want to become," she said.

Of the 190 students who sat the PEP examination, 101 were girls, representing 53.2 per cent, while 89 were boys, or 46.8 per cent.

The South East Region, which comprises Kingston and St Andrew, St Catherine and St Thomas, accounted for the largest number of candidates, with 80 students – 50 girls and 30 boys.

The Southern Region, comprising Clarendon, Manchester and St Elizabeth, followed with 59 students, including 25 girls and 34 boys.

The Western Region, which covers Westmoreland, Hanover, St James and Trelawny, had 36 candidates, evenly split between 18 boys and 18 girls.

The North East Region, comprising Portland, St Mary and St Ann, had the smallest number, with 15 students – eight girls and seven boys.

CPFSA public relations officer Kristen Laing said the agency wanted the ceremony to do more than simply recognise academic performance.

"We just wanted to make sure that in an award ceremony like this, we have to prepare them for the next step, going into high school," Laing said.

Each of the 190 students received a certificate and a knapsack containing school supplies. The agency also recognised the top-scoring boy and girl in each of its four regions, as well as the overall top-performing boy and girl in the country.

The regional top performers received plaques and cash awards of $20,000 each, while the overall top boy and girl, who were among the eight regional awardees, also received laptops from sponsor National Education Trust and trophies from the CPFSA.

Laing pointed out that the children recognised at the ceremony did not all live in children's homes.

“Of the 190 students, 67 were from residential child-care facilities and places of safety, while 73 were in foster care. Another 42 were participating in family reintegration programmes and eight under supervision orders.”

The figures, Laing said, reflect the CPFSA's continued emphasis on family-based care, which the agency considers the preferred environment for raising children.

"We do push our family programmes to ensure that children are being raised as best as possible in familial environments," she said.

Laing stressed that children living in family environments could benefit from greater individual attention, including assistance with homework and supervision after school.

However, she stressed that children living in residential facilities also receive support to ensure they are adequately prepared for school and examinations.

"We do provide stable environments in our residential child-care facilities. We ensure that the caregivers who are there are working with our children, helping them to study, to get whatever they need done so that they can be successful in their exams," she said.

"For the parents and guardians attending the ceremony, the occasion was also a source of pride. The parents are happy and they have even expressed gratitude to the CPFSA for creating an occasion specifically to recognise the children's achievements and prepare them for secondary school.”

She noted that the agency's support does not end when the children leave primary school or even when they complete high school. The CPFSA provides continued assistance through programmes including transitional living, youth over 18 and aftercare services.

“The ceremony stands as a reinforcement and reminder that we're still here to support them, even through the high school journey and beyond, because we do support children in care after they high school, after they become adults, we offer that type of support through our transitional living programme, through our youth over 18 programme, and through our aftercare programme.”

Meanwhile, Thorburn reminded the children that the ceremony should be viewed not as a finish line, but as the beginning of another chapter.

"Young people, today we celebrate, but more than your results, we celebrate your possibilities. We celebrate your dreams, your potential, and the person you are becoming," she said.

She challenged the students to focus not only on the grades they hope to achieve, but on the people they want to become. "Do not let me ask yourself, 'What grades will I get?' Ask yourself, 'Who do I want to become?' Then decide every day to move closer to that person," Thorburn said.

She urged the children to dream without limiting themselves, while reminding them that achieving those dreams would require discipline, hard work, patience and perseverance.

"Your future will be the small choices you make every single day," she said.

tiffany.pryce@gleanerjm.com