— board members stage protest, call on Gov’t to clear the air

THE Board of Directors of the Central High School is calling on the Ministry of Education to clear the air on the future of the school, since they were informed that the institution will soon be moved from its location at Smyth Street, Georgetown.

Officials of the school were informed that the ministry has plans to “phase out” the school but students and teachers were not told where they will be housed once the process commences.
“We had several meetings with ministry officials… last year we met with the current Minister of Education but we have not heard anything positive as to where they are going,” said chairperson of the school’s Board of Directors, Ruth Howard on the sidelines of a protest on Wednesday.

Members of the school’s board and parents conducted a peaceful protest in front of the Ministry of Education on Brickdam.
Howard said the protest is their last recourse in an attempt to get the attention of the ministry and other relevant authorities.

Howard told Guyana Chronicle that the board intends to protest every Wednesday for one hour until the ministry makes a substantive decision on the future of the school.
She contended that the school’s performance at the Caribbean Secondary Examination Certificate (CSEC) exam has been exceptional for the past few years.
“In addition, we have suggested to them to move us to the Enterprise Primary School which was built for 1000 students but only has 200 students… that idea was rejected,” she lamented.

Howard said parents of the over 1000 students at the school are beginning to worry about the future of the school and their children. She urged the ministry to meet with them and talk about the plans for the future.