GoodHeart |Lack of coach, facilities impacting Jonathan Grant High School
Published:Saturday | March 4, 2023 | 12:43 AMKeisha Hill/ - Senior Gleaner Writer
Established 43 years ago on White Church Street in Spanish Town, St Catherine, Jonathan Grant High School is a beacon of hope for many in the surrounding Central St Catherine communities. However, despite the best efforts of the school’s administration over the years, it has failed to launch and sustain a creditable track and field programme, due in part to the school’s shift system and the absence of a trained coach.
As the school’s population grew, the shift system was introduced in 1984 with two shifts. By the year 1995, there were three shifts. A two-shift schedule was reintroduced in 2007. According to Principal Dr O’Neil B. Ankle, the school has been trying to establish a track and field programme for many years, but it has been significantly hampered by the shift system, lack of funding, coaching personnel, the lack of proper facilities and one training area that is overutilised.
“The shift system is a major problem. The students are unable to stay back for training after each shift has ended. The two-shift system currently operates with Shift A from 7 a.m. to 12 p.m. and Shift B from 11:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.,” Dr Ankle said.
Despite the serious space constraint the school faces with over 1,950 students at the institution in comparison to former years, he is imploring the Ministry of Education and Youth and the necessary agencies to accelerate the process of removing the school from the shift system. This, he said, would give the students access to more educational and sporting activities now restricted by the shift system.
There is also hope that the school will have the professional resources needed to guide its athletic programme. The track and field programme, Dr Ankle said, has also been significantly impacted with the absence of a trained coach. “Initially, we had a coach, but we did not have the resources to adequately remunerate him for his services. Overall, if we find quality coaches, we cannot pay them. It is difficult to move the programme ahead without adequate funding. We have had assistance from the school’s past student association, but their assistance cannot meet the necessary financial needs associated with preparing students for championships of such calibre,” he shared.
At the 2022 staging of the Inter-Secondary School Sports Association (ISSA) Boys and Girls’ Championships, Jonathan Grant High School gained a mere two points. This was their first time on the medal standings in as many years. Recently, the school received a donation of gym equipment from a past student and they are now in the process of identifying an area on the school’s compound that is best suited to set up a gym. “Prior to this donation, we had no gym equipment. We are grateful for the donation. However, we still need more assistance in this area,” Dr Ankle said.
Another setback to their programme is the lack of facilities for the students. A perimeter fence was not immediately erected when the school was constructed, and, as a result, persons in the vicinity of the school have built homes and businesses on the school’s property. The perimeter fence was completed 11 years ago, but the playing field, which is now a dust bowl, has also been reduced from its former size to a mere 250-metre track. Most of the sporting disciplines have been restricted, while others activities have been placed on rotation to facilitate use by the students for varying activities.
Sophia Haynes McCalla, head of the sports department, and Janet Peart-McLeod, director of sports, said they will be happy if they get a medal at this year’s staging of the championships. “If it’s even one medal, of any colour, it would be an achievement for us. We make good with what we have and we are hoping to do well,” they said.
Much is expected from high jumper, Michael Neil, who has been doing extremely well at the local track and field events being held across the island.
To donate or learn more about Jonathan Grant High School, contact: 876-749-1417; 876-907-1438 jonathangrant.high.sce@moey.gov.jm. Have a story you’d like to share? Email us at goodheart@gleanerjm.com.