Governor General at International School

Excitement and sheer joy rippled through the International School of St. Lucia Tuesday morning when Her Excellency Governor General Dame Pearlette Louisy paid a visit there.
Though the visit was long in coming, as pointed out by Her Excellency, it went down without a hitch with Her Excellency thoroughly enjoying herself as she toured the premises, heard directly from students of the work they are involved in and the efforts of the school to inculcate in them an education that would enable them to be employable persons in almost any part of the world.
From being greeted in eleven different languages by students to acknowledging the gift of flowers given her by students and staff of the school, Dame Pearlette Louisy, at the end said she had a wonderful time.
As for the school, the joy of students, faculty members and members of the school’s board of directors, at hosting the Governor General, though briefly, was in itself a joy to behold.
“I am pleased to be here” Dame Pearlette Louisy told a smiling student body of 100 students.
She commended the school for its foresight and expressed her pleasure that the school had found a home in St. Lucia.
The International School of St. Lucia (ISSL) opened its doors on September 4th, 2006 as the country’s first private, non-profit secondary school. From its inception, ISSL has been a community project – conceptualized and made a reality by a group of parents who saw the need for an alternative education product in St. Lucia. It was widely believed that St. Lucia’s burgeoning economic development, the influence of globalization and firm conviction that students should be prepared for life in the modern world made the introduction of the International School St. Lucia a necessity, but no one could have predicted the success that ISSL has experienced in its first 18 months of operation.

From 29 students on its first day, the school has grown steadily to an incredible 99 students ranging in age from Grade 3 to Grade 12. Although the emphasis for now is on secondary education, ISSL will continue to expand its junior classes, and the goal is eventually to provide a seamless education from Pre-Kindergarten through to pre-University level.
Whether the children are of visitors to St. Lucia who will eventually return home or St. Lucian students who have an eye for studying abroad or going straight into a career, the country now offers another option for secondary education. Expanding the horizons of education in our land can only make a positive contribution to the whole.
The International School of St. Lucia is a non-profit organization founded by the St. Lucian community which offers a secondary school accreditation equivalent to ‘A’ level at an internationally competitive rate. The accreditation is recognized worldwide for tertiary education and in some subjects Grade 12 subjects are tackled at a First Year University level, thereby giving a leg-up to potential freshmen. ISSL offers an option to those parents who have the desire and the means to have their children privately educated. ISSL is becoming an integrated part of the education system in St. Lucia, in terms of academic achievement as well as competition in sports and games. In this era of globalization, more than at any time in the past, the International School of St. Lucia is merely another sign of the “small world” we live in.

Great Expectations for students at International School Great expectations! That’s what year ten students at the International School St Lucia had as they embarked upon a three-day career placement as the culmination of a four month long journey of discovery into the world of further education and personal development. The programme, a revised edition to the curriculum at the International School, was devised by Mrs Judith Common, a former head of Learning and Development within a large public sector organization in the United Kingdom. She said, "The programme introduces students to the concept of self awareness and continuous development. The programme began by assessing individual strengths and interests and through a number of activities, both within the class room and outside. "we explored individual interests and opportunities for on going development. Our state of the art computer facilities allowed students to research career and further education options, develop a curriculum vitae and write letters of introduction to a number of local companies and individuals. This led to a number of companies and individuals agreeing to sponsor career placements. The final three days of the career programme Monday 4th, Tuesday 5th and Wednesday 6th, February 2008 was spent participating in placements which students themselves had helped organize. The placements were many and varied and included Sandals Resorts, The Star Publishing Company, Mc Namara and Company Solicitor’s to name but a few. So did the placements live up to the expectations of the students? Sarah Munn who carried out her placement at the STAR said: "I gained a great understanding of what the field of journalism is like. This has reinforced my desire to pursue a career in Journalism." Inga Auguste who participated in the entertainment program at Sandals Resorts felt that, "You must have a positive attitude to your work. it’s important in the hospitality industry to make people feel comfortable and special." What of the companies who had placed the students? Mr Ignacio Perez, General Manager of Sandals Resorts stated: "We are keen to support this initiative as Sandals believes it is important to foster young talent so they can make a real contribution to the future development of the St Lucia tourism industry."By all accounts a very successful and enjoyable experience was had which lived up to everyone’s "Great Expectations."