IN the light of recent revelations of sexual misconduct among some students at St. Rose’s High School, a Better Defined One (BDI) Leadership Development Seminar was held in the school’s auditorium on Friday. 

The seminar was conducted by former St. Rose’s students, twin brothers Astell and Allister Collins and targeted Fifth and Fourth Form students, their parents and teachers of the senior secondary school.

Astell Collins delivered the presentation, but was accompanied by his brother, Allister who was also representing the Guyana National Faith and HIV coalition.

The once practising medical technologist (Clinical Pathology Specialist) is now regarded by many as a leader, affecting change, giving hope, and transforming lives. A proud past student of the school, Astell Collins was the first Guyanese to be invited as a delegate of the International Missions festival at Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He has hosted seminars at various universities and organisations in United States, the Caribbean and South Africa.

As an inspirational conference speaker, he takes people on journeys of self-discovery to self-mastery, helping them to identify and develop their unique talents, abilities & gifts (TAGs).

Those at the seminar paid rapt attention to his presentation; he stressed the important responsibility of parents to be actively involved with the nurturing and cultivation of their children, so that together with the teachers they could foster contributing citizens rather than delinquent inhabitants.
To the students, he instilled the message of harbouring positivity despite all the negativity they may face: “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.”
Noting that while the school has been given a negative spotlight by the behaviour of a few, students have the opportunity to utilise the spotlight to “give them something worth talking about,” by focusing on excelling at their exams. “The greatest answer to your critics is to succeed,” he said.
He also mentioned the importance of choosing the right friends, as it would impact their destinies and paths in life. Additionally, the importance of valuing time was underscored. “You determine your value, where time is valuable and should be spent wisely; freedom is not about being able to make decisions that are beneficial in the short term, it is about management and responsibility; and the first resource you are given is time; mismanaging time makes you lose opportunities (and therefore [causes you to] make obstructive choices)”, he said.
One of the key points Astell Collins emphasised at the seminar was the need for parents to stand by each other, eliminating the mentality of “Once it’s not my child, I don’t care.” He spoke of Ubuntu (Zulu word meaning the spirit of humanity) to show the inter-related nature of a nation, “I am because you are and what affects you will also affect me.”
“As a former student of the school, we felt a deep, abiding sense of responsibility, and thus were willing to avail our services to offer whatever support was needed, Astell said. The brothers have also pledged to continue working with the school to engage parents, teachers and students.
He made mention of the speedy facilitation of the session by Miss Hamilton, the Head Teacher of the school who continues to teach despite her post, lauding her as a dedicated and hard-working teacher he has known for many years.
“BD1 Leadership has an existing partnership with the Ministry of Education and from a recent meeting with Ms. Donna Chapman, we’re planning to conduct a series of leadership seminars specifically focused on empowering teachers,” he said.
A member of the PTA also addressed the audience and expressed his disappointment at the incident which gave rise to the seminar. He urged his fellow parents “to get their act together” to ensure the success of their children.
At the conclusion of the seminar, one parent said that she thought it was definitely a good initiative, while another noted that the seminar will help to encourage the students to pick themselves up, dust off and move forward. The seminar was professionally done, focusing on encouraging the students rather than highlighting the incident itself, and future seminars should be done, said another parent.
A student present at the discussion disclosed that the seminar has empowered her to handle any negativity that may come out of the incident and she looks forward to more such sessions.

(By Raveena Mangal)