Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand today commissioned the Mrs. Maureen Massiah Wing at the Bishops’ High School in Georgetown. The new building houses eight additional classrooms for the school, a laboratory, a canteen and a common area where students can sit, eat and socialize.
The new building was named after Mrs. Massiah to honour her tremendous contributions to the school. She is a former student and served as Principal for 15 years (1987 – 2002). She is the longest-serving Principal at the school.
Minister Manickchand said that the idea behind the expansion of the school is to provide more students to benefit from the opportunities and quality of education offered by the institution. She said that this is the approach at the five national schools (Queen’s College, the Bishops’ High, St. Stanislaus College, St. Rose’s High School and St. Joseph High School). She said that by expanding these schools, more students can be placed and accommodated.
In addition to the eight classrooms and laboratory, the Education Minister said that the vision was also to provide a space where children could meet and learn more about each other and take away better experiences from the school.
Further, Minister Manickchand said that the Ministry is focused on schools producing children who can develop the country and respond to the immediate, intermediate and long-term plans. She said that producing rounded students is a priority for the Ministry of Education. She said, “Our plan, which we’re working on is to have every student exiting high school exposed to and be relatively proficient in playing one musical instrument, a foreign language, one TVET subject and having a strong sense of volunteerism.”
Moreover, Minister Manickchand informed the school that from 2023, the Bishops’ High School will allow cross-streaming. She said that this will allow students in any stream to also write subjects that are offered in another stream at the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examination. The Minister of Education said that there are children who have special gifts and talents who should not be limited to writing a specific number of subjects. She added that Guyana will also look to approaching the completion of School Based Assessments differently to allow students to benefit better from the practical exposure.
The Principal of the School, Mrs. Shandrina Welcome – Lee while giving a background to the new wing, said that the decision to name the new wing in honour of Mrs. Massiah was arrived at through consultation by old students and stakeholders. She said it is aimed at honouring one of the most influential and long-serving principals of the Bishops’ High School. “During her time, she was instrumental in steadying and restoring the standard of education being delivered at the institution. This feat came naturally to her as she understood the illustrious history of the school. She espoused discipline and instilled that to students and staff alike,” Mrs. Welcome–Lee noted in her remarks.
According to the Principal, the journey to the new building began with site visits by the Minister of Education and team in the first quarter of 2021 where the idea and vision were shared. In July of 2022, the contract valued at $95.4M was signed following a public bidding process.
Meanwhile, the Chairman of the school’s Board of Governors, Mr. Kosi John said that the Ministry of Education has recognized the importance of growth and education and saw it fit to expand the hallowed walls of the Bishops’ High School.
