Deputy Speaker challenges former students to give back
Honourable Smith made the plea on December 2, 2021, shortly after handing over a cheque for $15,000 to the Principal of ESHS as part of rebuilding efforts.
He said, “I am a product of this school and I’m a very proud product. I’m here today because of this school and I am grateful to all the teachers who invested in me during my time attending this institution. So, today as a business person and alumni, I am going to invest in this school.”
He also challenged other students to give back to the institution.
“What I want to see happen is that every student who leaves this school, if they contribute whether its $1000, $100 to a building fund to school, we should,” he said.
“As business people, we need to give back, so today I'm begging them, asking, that we all who have been to the school contribute back to the school by creating a building fund, whether it’s a $1000, let's do it, please, I'm begging,” he said.
Progress towards rebuilding
The donations represented progress towards the construction of the main ESHS campus aimed at restoring the school back to its official location, in addition to ending the use of the old Clarence Thomas Building and the current shift systems.
Hon Smith further revealed that having had a mother who has been a teacher for years, education always comes first.
“We need to continue building. Today is a sign of us investing back into our future, so let’s continue to invest in the future and let’s move on,” he said.
On Thursday, 2nd December 2021 government officially broke ground for the construction of new buildings at the Elmore Stoutt High School in Lower Estate. At the ground-breaking ceremony, two contracts were signed for demolition and site clearance, and for design consultancy. These two contracts combined were in the amount of $235,559.50.
Other legislators of both Government and the Opposition made financial pledges towards assisting in the rebuilding of the school.
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57 Responses to “Deputy Speaker challenges former students to give back”
Consequently, government play a crucial role in budgeting for public education; adequately planning, programming and budgeting for education must be a top priority issue, a Quadrant 1 issue, ie, urgent and important. Operations and maintenance budgeting should be used to fund staff compensation, minor equipage outlay, maintenance and repair etc. Capital budgeting should be used to fund construction, major equipage, recapitalization etc of educational facilities.
The VI is disaster-prone, especially from hurricanes. As such, school facilities must designed and constructed to withstand at a minimum Cat 3 hurricanes, as well as against other disasters , ie, flooding. Cat 5 construction is ideal but expensive. Schools should be designed to serve schools and ride out shelters during a hurricane. Anegada, due to its low elevation may have to be evacuated before a pending hurricane; other residents cannot evacuate and may need to ride out a hurricane in a public facility(s). As such, they should only be housed in a facility(s) certified to withstand the approaching storm. School facilities should be constructed for resiliency. How should education facilities be funded?
The VI funding options are limited and without the cash reserve government may have to borrow to fund construction. The VI tax to GDP ratio is moderately low. Some locales used property taxes to fund schools. The increase in property taxes can be temporary with a sunset clause. The VI will have to get creative and prudent in how it fund its bucket of needs.
You want to charge your kids for their school building!?
If I had it to give I wouldn't be donated because no administration can account for their spending. Money gets wasted all the time.
Not me slaving away for 8hrs a day to watch the government convince me that a bucket of paint cost $5000.
I think he had a little too much to drink.