-as President Ali announces major upgrades to island’s ‘growing’ secondary school

PRESIDENT Dr Irfaan Ali on Thursday visited Leguan Secondary School and pledged to improve the facility’s comfort and resources to meet the needs of a growing student and teacher population.

During the visit, Dr Ali promised to ensure the school is fitted with air‑conditioning units and to provide additional furniture to accommodate the increasing numbers of students and staff.

The assurance was welcomed by teachers, who said the upgrades were urgently needed as enrolment has increased recently.

Teachers at the meeting also shared personal testimonies about the impact of recent government initiatives to broaden access to tertiary education. Several staff described how the Guyana Online Learning Academy (GOAL) and other online programmes have enabled them to pursue higher qualifications without leaving their home island in the Essequibo River.

Mario Seeram said he completed studies at the Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE) in 2021 and subsequently pursued a bachelor’s degree in agriculture at the University of Guyana under a government-sponsored programme.

Studying largely online, he benefited from free tuition provided by the current administration and travelled to the mainland only for practical sessions and face‑to‑face examinations held on weekends.

The flexible arrangement allowed him to remain on the island while completing his degree, which she described as convenient. He used the opportunity to publicly thank the People’s Progressive Party/Civic government for making the opportunity possible.

One mathematics teacher, who has taught for 27 years, said members of his family had benefited from the expanded opportunities, noting that his eldest daughter now teaches IT and another daughter is a physical education teacher. They were all trained locally.

“I did the online degree when it first came out at the University of Guyana, and then I did a post graduate diploma from UWI [University of the West Indies] online as well, and then I have finished my master’s right from Leguan,” the senior educator shared.

Other educators recounted studying through the University of Guyana’s online offerings and through the CPCE’s distance programme, with some completing associate and bachelor’s degrees and progressing to postgraduate studies.

Another teacher said recent government provisions meant she could attend the University of Guyana for free and undertake coursework largely online, travelling to the mainland only for practicals and face‑to‑face examinations held on weekends. “It’s been very convenient,” she said, thanking the administration for making tertiary study accessible while remaining on the island.