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For the next five years, the parents or guardians of 37 Jamaica National (JN) scholars should encounter a little less stress on their pockets after their charges turned out outstanding performances in this year’s Primary Exit Profile (PEP) examinations.

The students will benefit from five-year scholarships awarded by the JN Foundation.

All the recipients were recognised at a special PEP Awards Reception held yesterday at the bank’s Half-Way Tree Road location in St Andrew.

The scholarship awards have been ongoing since 1983 and have benefited hundreds of students at the secondary and tertiary levels.

This year, the theme was ‘Live In The Wow’, and dancehall artiste Agent Sasco was invited to deliver the keynote address.

ENDLESS POSSIBILITIES
“‘Live in the wow’ is not just about living, it’s about living a particular way, and I would imagine the ‘wow’ to me suggests that it’s something to ‘wow’ about. So you want to live a life that you’re going to ‘wow’ about, and the most important part of that to me is living the life that you will ‘wow’ about and not necessarily somebody else’s. So it’s not about living for people to ‘wow’ about your life,” Sasco said as he broke down the theme to the scholars.

He gave the youngsters tips about believing, success, and endless possibilities.

“I really would like for you to know that your dreams are the foundation of what can allow you to live in the ‘wow’, and don’t think of them as dreams or unattainable fantasies that you just dream of. I did that and somehow found my way in doing it because, I guess, once you dream enough and still entertain that idea that it is possible, it naturally becomes so,” Sasco told the JN scholars.

… RECIPIENTS EXPECTED TO REMAIN GOOD STUDENTS
Candace Ramsay, a 2014 JN Scholarship recipient who now attends St Andrew High School for Girls, recently attained nine Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) subjects, all with distinctions.

During her testimonial to the 2019 recipients, Ramsay said: “This scholarship made life a whole lot easier for my parents as year after year, my school fees were being covered, which meant that they had money for more important matters. ”

This year, the awardees were made up of three groups: the Parish Scholarship Recipients, JN School Savers, and JN Group Employees’ Children.

Lepert Thomas, grandfather of St Thomas’s top PEP student, Tiffany DeCambre, expressed his gratitude at seeing her being awarded for her hard work.

“I am grateful and I am expecting well of her,” Thomas told The Gleaner.

“I am expecting that she will hold up her end of the bargain; to continue being the good student that I know she is. She has been good. She is also the reigning Spelling Bee Champion for St Thomas two years in a row. This is another tick up for her, and I am expecting her to do great things.”

Tiffany, a past student of Airy Castle Primary, now attends Immaculate Conception High School and says she would like to become a veterinarian.

Phoebe Falconer (Clarendon), Annaliese Foster (Hanover), Ari East (Kingston), Ruthvick Goddendla (Manchester), Trae Wenden (Portland), Sebastian Wright (St Andrew), Tafari Jackson (St Ann), Joshua Thompson (St Catherine), Joel Williams (St Elizabeth), Anastasia Wainright (St James), Nathaniel Cohall (St Mary), Sanasha Green (Trelawny), and Tyra Reeves (Westmoreland) rounded out the JN PEP parish scholars who were identified by the Ministry of Education.

With the new school year set to start in just a matter of days, Rose Miller, grants manager at the JN Foundation, is advising parents who are behind with their back-to-school shopping to “try not to stress”.

“It is easy to stress when you are behind on any task, but stress and panic will only make the situation far worse,” she said.

Miller, who is also head of the JN Bank BeWi$e financial empowerment programme, said the key is for parents to get organised and to start the process immediately.

“Though you’re shopping in a rush, you don’t want to overspend or to buy what you don’t need,” she advised.“Whether you’re starting out early or late, the principles to carry out your back-to-school shopping remain the same.”

She also noted that while the last-minute shopper might be working with very limited time, they are still in a position to take advantage of deals, and save on the cost of books and other school supplies for their children.

“Your first objective is to prepare a list and prioritise them, dealing with the most important items first; a budget should then be prepared. Uniforms and textbooks should generally be at the top of the list,” she stated.

SAVE MONEY
Miller advised that parents don’t have to buy everything new, simply because it’s a new school year.

“It may be advisable to examine the condition of the uniforms your child has now to see if they fit and in a condition where they can still be worn,” she stated. Based on this, parents can then decide whether new uniforms are required.”

She noted that the same rule can be applied to items such as lunch kits, school bags, shoes and igloos. “This is why it is important to not only buy quality products, so that they last a longer time, but to also teach children how to take care of the items, thus reducing the need to purchase the same items each year.”

As regards textbooks, Miller noted that if funds are tight and parents are unable to buy all the required books at once, they must speak with their child’s teacher to ascertain which of the books are most essential, as opposed to those that can be purchased at a later date.

“In this way, you will be able to ensure that your child has the most important books for the first few months of the school year,” she reasoned.

The JN Foundation grants manager added that when purchasing textbooks, parents should do their research, shop around, and try to access books, at the most affordable prices.

“Use the telephone or go online; and, you won’t waste time and gas driving around from store to store,” she advised. “Also, it is still not too late to ask friends and relatives to help you source used textbooks.”

Miller also recommended that saving for back-to-school expenses is critical, pointing out that parents should have started putting money aside months ago.

The JN Foundation, through its Parish Histories of Jamaica project, recently launched the Anancy Story Competition.
The contest targets high-school students residing in the parish of St Thomas and invites them to vie for attractive prizes, based on colourful and animated video features about their parish’s contribution to Jamaica’s dynamic history.
Entries to the competition, which was officially announced at the Robert Lightbourne High School in St Thomas recently, closes on March 6.

Students are requested to upload their storytelling video features, not exceeding 10 minutes, about the past to the official Parish Histories of Jamaica website at www.historyjamaica.org Sebrina Brown, project officer at JN Foundation, noted that this initiative was conceptualised as part of the Parish Histories’ objective to present local history in an appealing, captivating and easy to comprehend format.
“We are, therefore, seeking the involvement of young people in the documentation and dissemination of our cultural history,” she stated, “And, it is our hope that students will respond by demonstrating their interest and enthusiasm to record the past and contribute to boosting cultural retention.”

COMMUNITY BUY-IN
She noted, “The Anancy Story Competition could be an exciting activity for students, particularly if they seek the buy-in from older relatives, grandparents and older persons in their communities, who will agree to tell Anancy stories in an animated and fun manner, similar to the approach of our folklorists.”
For additional information about the focus and format of entries to the competition, students are requested to visit www.historyjamaica.org and, subsequently, to submit their entries to that same website.