Bog Walk High renamed for Enid Bennett
BOG WALK High School in St Catherine has been renamed the Enid Bennett High School in honour of the late former state minister and daughter of the parish, who was instrumental in the establishment of the institution.
Bennett played a key role in securing the funds and land for the construction of the school, along with
Tacius Golding
High School and Lucky
Valley Primary
School in the
1970s, under the ‘New Deal in Education’ project.
Minister of Education, Youth and Information Ruel Reid, in his address at the renaming ceremony on the grounds of the institution on Tuesday, hailed Bennett as an exceptional servant of the people.
“She had an outstanding record in community service and in her political life, and, therefore, this is a fitting opportunity for us to recognise her contribution to the nation,” he said.
He added that “it is delightful because not only do we have an opportunity to recognise the role played by a humble Jamaican who was passionate about the welfare of the less privileged in society, but also to celebrate the significant growth and progress of this school since its founding in the 1970s”.
NEW UNIFORMS FOR NEW SCHOOL YEAR
Principal Patrick Phillips said the school board, administration, teachers, students and other stakeholders welcome the name change.
He informed that the uniform for the fifth-form students will be changed at the start of the upcoming new school year.
“Ordinarily, the students who are moving from grade 10 to grade 11 would not change uniform; however, with the new name, we have to have a new look, so we are going to change the uniform,” Phillips said.
Bennett’s grandniece, Belinda-Gae Orrett, thanked the Government and the school’s administration, noting that “we the members of her family accept this honour with pride and humility”.
She said that one of her late grandaunt’s proudest achievements was her role in the establishment of the school “to give the children a ladder whereby they can climb out of poverty. We are happy that her work has been recognised. We are happy because it means her sterling service will never be forgotten”.