A number of children are benefiting from five years of secondary education at the Albena Lake-Hodge Comprehensive School, thanks to the Anguilla Social Security Board which is financing the scholarships. The programme, which has now been expanded, was launched on the first of this month, an event which should have taken place before as part of the 25th Anniversary celebrations in 2007.

Scholarship Awards and Parents at Social Security Office

Director of Social Security, Timothy Hodge, said that five or six years ago the Board decided to provide a scholarship to one student from each of the primary schools to the Comprehensive School and all the way to Fifth Form. One of them, Thrishina Hodgedid so well that her scholarship is being continued into Sixth Form. Mr. Hodge stated that a further decision had been taken to sponsor a new group of students each year so that there would always be a group of scholarship awardees in each of the forms in the programme.
The Social Security Director made the point that while the Board made available EC$1,000 to each student mainly to purchase uniforms and books, they were being selected on every occasion by the Education Department. “We do not have money to throw away so when we give a scholarship to a recipient, we expect that all of the students will do well academically and will be well behaved and we expect them to do us proud,” he said.
Rosanna Browne, Research and Development Officer with Social Security, appealed to the parents, guardians and the students to take full advantage of the opportunity. “We expect that you will make certain that the criteria is fulfilled, that the students maintain a C average grade or above, that they have good work ethic and are well behaved,” she stated. She observed that the teachers had selected the students on the basis of they work and that although they showed a good learning potential, they needed financial support which the Social Security Board was now providing.
Meanwhile,

Thrishina Hodge

Thrishina Hodge, now a second year Sixth Former, expressed thanks for the scholarship awarded to her. “Being sponsored by Social Security is a very good opportunity for us as it helps us to realise the value of our education and to aim at excellence,” she told the other students at the launching ceremony. “In addition to giving us value, the scholarship awards make us realise that we do not have to follow friends in going the wrong way such as in gangs. The opportunity is for us to learn and socialise well and achieve excellence.”
The Social Security Board offered 25 scholarships but the primary schools sent in 16 students who are now among other previous awardees attending the Comprehensive School. The current recipients are as follows:
From the Island Harbour Primary School: Marlene Otto and Josee Harrigan; Morris Vanterpool Primary School: Stanford, Linda and Kerri-Anne Julius and Ametist, Kent and Kendall Webster; Stoney Ground Primary School: Starry Gumbs, Jameida Carty, Deloris Richardson, Romekeo Richardson, Lena Woodley, Jose-Ann Carty, Yvonne Rogers and Kyral Rogers; Valley Primary School: Mavis Brooks, Kareem Brooks, Jeanette Tuitt, Vidall Galloway, Cassandra Adams, Jamoi Adams, Janet Morton and Uniqua Morton; Road Primary School: Lisa Woodley, Latisha Richardson, Jacquieline Bailey, Jermaine Hughes, Desiree Richardson, Regina Richardson, Kim Richardson and Kemisha Richardson; and from the Alwyn Allison Primary School: Maureen Gumbs and Vidale Richardson.
Those are all students who were recommended by the various schools and awarded the Social Security Board’s five-year secondary education scholarships based on their potential for learning and excellence in school.

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