QUEEN’S College (QC) held its annual Speech Night and Prize Giving in the school’s Camp and Thomas Roads auditorium, Georgetown.

Speaking at the ceremony, the Principal, Ms. Jackie Benn noted that, over the years, it has always been a momentous occasion and it showcases the accomplishments of the students.
It represents the symbolic combination of hard work, the actualisation of goals attained and the acknowledgement of success achieved. Thus, it is only fitting that they celebrate the achievements of the students, she said.
Benn extended warm congratulations to the Class of 2012, acknowledging that, they may have been faced with challenges along the way, the function is surely testimony of the battles they would have fought and won.
“You have gained exceptional experiences and created memories for a lifetime,” she told them.
She remarked that all their experiences have prepared them for the heights they are expected to climb in the future.
Benn asserted that the school is particularly proud of its students who sat the National Grade Nine Examination in 2012, stating that all the students’ performance would have demonstrated that QC is, indeed, a school of excellence.
Supremacy
She added that the school continues to show supremacy in many areas and not only academics.
She recognised the efforts of the teaching staff, who worked extremely hard to do the utmost they can to help the students, stressing that they put in much longer hours than persons would think.
“They think hard about what they should continue to do and to hold themselves to the highest academic standards,” she said.
Benn thanked those persons who would have made it possible for them to go about their daily activities with the level of confidence, including from security and support teams, the QC Old Students Association (QCOSA), Ministry of Education and the school’s Board of Governors.
She recognised that all those persons worked together with one common purpose of encouraging and developing lifelong learning in the students, whom she urged to remain unwavering as they pursue their future goals.
Meanwhile, presenting the Principal’s Report for the academic year 2011-2012, Acting Deputy Principal, Ms. Lenise Parker said they started with 358 boys and 425 girls (783 students) inclusive of those who enrolled in grade seven.
The number on roll increased in October with the intake of students in the Lower Sixth Form.
She also reported that the teaching staff continued to be engaged in seminars and workshops, organised by the Education Ministry and other stakeholders, so that they can become more efficient teachers.
Subjects
Included in her report was the number of subjects offered to the students at both the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) and Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate Examination (CSEC) levels.
The candidates sat approximately 25 CSEC subjects and 31 at the CAPE level, recording pass rates of 97 percent and 75 percent, respectively.
Parker also informed that the students participated in a number of activities to ensure that they become well-rounded individuals.
Among those were chess and cricket competitions, environmental and religious clubs, as well as the Remembrance Day Quiz, Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) quiz and the Mashramani Contest.
Parker expressed gratitude to those persons who contributed to making those events a success.
Students were awarded prizes for their excellent academic work during the year, performances at CSEC and CAPE and in co-curricular activities.
Present at the forum, too, were Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport, Dr. Frank Anthony and his wife, Manager of the National AIDS Programme Secretariat (NAPS), Dr. Shanti Singh, who saw their daughter, Jessica Anthony collect various prizes for her showing at the CSEC, from which she emerged Best Candidate.