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THE GEMS OF GRADUATION SEASON 2016 PT 1 Featuring Sadie Vernon Technical High, Ladyville Technical High, Canaan SDA High, Edward P. Yorke High and Maud Williams High By: Alton F. Humes (Freelance Reporter) BELIZE CITY, Tuesday, May 17th, 2016 It’s another school year coming down to the wire, and another class of eager and spirited faces and bodies ready and charged to go out and face the world. And it is in that frame of spirit that the BELIZE TIMES, for a third straight year, spotlights the best and brightest of the High School Graduating Class of 2016. Our coverage this year kicks off with Sadie Vernon Technical High School, on Partridge Street. While school officials were unable to officially confirm at press time just how many will be marching up, the ceremony is scheduled for Thursday, June 2nd, 2016 at the Central Assembly of God Church on Freetown Road, beginning at 6:00 p.m. Leading this class of 4H1, the school’s only 4th form, will be 17-year-old Mr. Byron Lopez (Valedictorian), 18-year-old Mr. Terrence Usher (Salutatorian) and 18-year-old Miss Anisha Gotoy (3rd Place). All three graduates are from the Southside of Belize City (Lopez and Gotoy from the Lake Independence area, Usher from Glenn Street). While their family lives are mostly stable (only Lopez comes from a single-parent home), their 4 years at Sadie Vernon High were anything but. Lopez, a noted football enthusiast, admitted that his 4 years were devoid of a chance to be a part of any sporting competitions in lieu of focusing solely on his studies. For Usher, a transfer student from Wesley College (he transferred at the start of 3rd Form), it was a positive change of pace, as he was better able to manage his studies and work at Sadie Vernon. Gotoy said that it was her English lessons that were most ‘complicated’, admit-
22 MAY
THE BELIZE TIMES
2016
to go to 6th Form with no official career plans on tap as of yet, says he is grateful for the time he spent at Sadie Vernon High, and thanks his classmates for having fun together as well as for always supporting each other. His valedictorian colleague Lopez, who will be taking a similar route to study Business, concurs and advises to “work hard, have a mind that excels as far as possible… Dedication is the key to success”. Ms. Gotoy, who plans to study Nursing at
SADIE VERNON TECHNICAL HIGH
Salutatorian, Terrence Usher
Valedictorian, Byron Lopez
3rd place, Anisha Gotoy
LADYVILLE TECHNICAL HIGH
Valedictorian, Danielson Correa
Salutatorian, Kaison Ortiz
3rd place, Dale Montero
CANAAN SDA HIGH
Valedictorian, Mariah Murillo
Salutatorian, Jacklin Vasquez
ting that her teacher used different methods to teach and “graded me very hard”. But what got them through was the “village” of supporters who got them over the ever-morphing ‘hump’. In addition to their respective families, Usher additionally points to school counsellor Mr. Samson
Jacobs, who he referred to as a “lifesaver” who kept him from giving more trouble than he was already known for, and two more critical figures, Ms. Kelly and Mrs. Jules, who he says “motivated me to go back to school” when he was close to dropping out entirely. Usher, who plans
3rd place, Gabriel Tun the University of Belize, advises upcoming students to continue “[to] work hard; and stop back-answering and disrespecting the teachers. They know better and know more than you do”. Moving into the Belize District, Ladyville Technical High School in Ladyville will graduate
64 students on Saturday, June 4th at the Ramada Princess Hotel on Newtown Barracks in Belize City, beginning at 3:00 p.m. 34 females and 32 males will be marching up, and leading their ranks are: Mr. Danielson Correa (Valedictorian), Mr. Kaison Ortiz (Salutatorian) and Mr. Dale Montero (3rd Place). Going back to Belize City, Northside mainstay Edward P. Yorke High School will be graduating its largest class yet - 142 students. The ceremony is scheduled for Sunday, June 5th at the Ramada Princess Hotel on Newtown Barracks in Belize City, beginning at 3:00 p.m. Leading that class are: 16-year-old Valedictorian Mr. Glevaughn Smith [of Class 4-Industrial Studies (IS), with a Grade Average of 91.148%], 17-year-old Ms. Irene Flores [of Class 4-Science, with a Grade Average of 91.102%], and 3rd Place, giving the Vote of Thanks, 17-year-old Ms. Guadalupe Miranda [also of 4IS]. They were interviewed on Friday, May 13th, in the midst of their hectic schedules at the school’s Princess Margaret Drive campus. Smith came to Belize with his parents and little brother from the island nation of Jamaica. The Belize-bred Flores and Miranda have their roots much closer. Flores is from the Caribbean Shores constituency, and Miranda lives on Central American Boulevard, but very disparate nonetheless. Flores lives with her parents and 2 younger brothers, while Miranda only has her 28-year-old sister to depend on since her mother is deceased, and her father is in-and-out of her life. Add to the above the experiences heading into and going through high school, and the picture gets that much more complicated. Smith, who entered Edward P. Yorke High from the prestigious primary school institution Belize Elementary School, said his peers “felt I was far off from reality”. For Miranda, she felt somewhat ostracized during her years because she came from Queen’s Square Anglican Primary School. Flores said her ‘short’ stature made people, particularly her peers, “not take me seriously” but it was a challenge she overcame with her towering enthusiasm to study. Similarly to Sadie Vernon students, it was the efforts of the community of friends and supporters that kept these students together. Smith points to his parents as his chief cheerleaders, despite their strict monitoring and “always push me to do my best.” For Flores, in addition to her parents, it was her English Language and English Literature teacher, Mr. Nicholson, who always asked about her grades and who kept her in and ahead of the game. And Ms. Miranda can now certainly thank her older sister, who was “always there” for her. And with 16 CXCs on his plate, and an eye on becoming an Engineer one day, Smith phrases his Continued on page 20