Mayaro SEA grads told they are seeds of greatness

This advice was given by motivational speaker Jillian Andrews, who delivered the feature address at the 2006 SEA awards ceremony for Mayaro students held recently at the bpTT Mayaro Resource Centre.

Andrews told the students that there was greatness inside all of them, whether or not they placed at the top in the examinations.

“There are seeds of greatness inside each one of you. But you have to make use of it. You all have your special skills and talents, which can enable you to be the best in your chosen field.

“Fifteen or 20 years from now, one of you can be the best plumber in Trinidad and Tobago, or the best doctor, or the best footballer. The race is not for the swiftest but for those who endureth to the end. Only by excelling can you rise to the top. Don’t be contented with mediocrity,” Andrews exhorted the students.

She told them that they would be entering a whole new world, with new and exciting challenges and opportunities awaiting them.

The awards ceremony, now in its fourth year, was organised by the Mayaro Past Pupils’ Association (MPPA). Its theme was “Let’s Change the World”. The top 20 students were awarded scholarships.

The top three SEA students from Mayaro, who were specially honoured, are Britanny Jacob, of Mayaro Government; Britteny Allen, of Mayaro Community; and Royanne Warrick, of St. Thomas RC.

MPPA President Oliver Alexander explained that the function was not to showcase which schools did best but to motivate the students as they embarked on their secondary school education.

He said while statistics revealed that SEA students from Mayaro generally performed below the national average, the 2006 results were an improvement on 2005.

He showered praise on the sponsors of the function - bpTT, Repsol, British Gas, bhp Billiton, EOG Resources, NGC, Talisman, Canadian Superior, ASCO and TSTT - for their support and commitment to the development of the young people of the community. Representatives of the companies pledged their continuing support for the venture. Cyrilla Jones, representative of the Ministry of Education, appealed to the graduates to embrace “all the opportunities provided at the secondary school level.”

“The children cannot go out on this journey alone. They need the guidance and support of the adults. We all have great expectations of them but all we can expect of them is to go out there and do their best,” she said.

A special guest at the function was Candace Arjoon, a former pupil of Mayaro Government Primary School, who has graduated with a BSc Engineering degree (First Class Honours) from the University of the West Indies, St Augustine.

One of the first recipients of a bpTT “Brighter Prospects” university scholarship for deserving students from Mayaro, Arjoon said the opportunity opened several doors for her.

“You are entering a very important phase of your life. No matter what school you are going to, you can succeed at your goals. You have the potential to do as well as I did or even better,” advised Arjoon, who attended Rio Claro Junior Secondary, after she passed her SEA examinations.

Jade Pariag and Jesse Benjamin, who tied for first place in the national SEA exams, were special guests at the MPPA awards function. They were presented with gifts by Ronda Francis, communications and external affairs advisor, bpTT.

A two-week summer camp aimed at introducing the SEA graduates to their new world at secondary school has been scheduled for later this month.