August 1, 2007 The Abaconian Page9A _ More Letters to the Editor Letters From Page 8 movement of cars and people on and off our campus. My philosophy is that every person on the Great Abaco Central High School cam- pus has a right to be safe and feel safe. With that in mind we have built a no tol- erance attitude towards any misconduct in the school. We created a close relationship with our local Marsh Harbour police and it is working wonderfully. Our school is for serious learners only. This year we have improved the physical environment of the school tremendously. The yard is kept clean and well manicured and the build- ings are nicely painted and kept free of any graffiti. We have even taken on the task of maintaining the Murphy Town Park next to us. We are a community-minded school. We have also improved the conditions of most of the classrooms. We have reopened the school’s library, air conditioned it and re-named it the Rob- ert Van Stratton Library, who was the PTA president in 1989 when the library was built. We have installed cable television in the school, a fax machine and high speed internet for better communication. The students can now do research from books in the library or on the internet. This year we acquired teachers for all of our subject areas; we were fully staffed. This year our students got the full benefit out of their educational experience. We have leased out our tuck shop which resulted in better products for our students, job creation for persons in the community and a better profit for the school. We have organized our first annual school fair and raffle this year to help with revenue for the school and give the community a family- oriented recreational activity to look for- ward to each year. The fair went beyond our expectations; it was a resounding suc- cess. We have created programs in the school such as our literacy program to improve the reading level of our students and help slow learners; we have incentive programs for our students such as It’s Academic with the Social Science Department, various in- school clubs to create a social atmosphere and compliment the classroom learning of our students. We have looked at all of our schemes of work to see how best we can align them with our national exams BJC and BGCSE standards. We hope for improved results with these na- tional exams as the school years progress. Our school has won many local and in- ternational competitions this year. Some of them include debating competitions, aca- demic competitions i.e. Spanish and reli- gious studies, leadership competitions and more. Our sporting programs at the school have improved tremendously this year. We hosted the inter-school sports this year at Murphy Town Park. The reviews are that it was the best inter-school sports in the history of inter-school sports on the island. Eight schools participated, both private and public; the Great Abaco Central High School fell to second place during the in- ter-school sports meet to rival S.C. Boo- tle. However, statistically our school did better. We will be the champions for the 2007/2008 interschool sports meet. I am proud to announce that the Great Abaco Central High School is the undefeated, un- disputable Champions of the 2006 Junior Junkanoo parade and have successfully de- fended this title for over five years. We are number one! Our agricultural program was improved this year; we are proud to say that we were able to grow and slaughter 150 chickens. I must add that our chickens were far supe- rior in size and quality of meat compared to any chickens you can find in food stores; thank you to Abaco Big Bird Farms for your support and donations of chicks and food and to Mr. Knowles of BEC for your support of our agricultural program. The Great Abaco Central High is quick- ly becoming the Educational Mecca of Abaco. Our school houses Pitman classes, College of The Bahamas Classes, self de- velopment classes and our most recent his- torical development here on Abaco; Baha- mas Technical Vocational Institute classes. Our students, parents, aunts, uncles, cous- ins, grandmothers and anyone else who needs an education can get one at the Great . Mr. Kendris Hield Why subscribe Receiving the Abaconian regularly will keep you informed on issues such as: * Resort & hotel development © Improvements to roads, airport, docks, schools, etc. e Phone and electric company changes ° Fishing, boating & sporting activities e Immigration, taxes or duty changes ¢ Community events ¢ New business ventures pe) “4 © Changes in airline service ff ah Ud ¢ Changes to laws and regulations Actions by local government ff a Oe pos 8 =} © 7 i Order The Abaconian Today Name Address Address City Postal code —— St. Country E-mail (or Fax (for renewal) 24 issues - US$ or B$ $45 USA via 3 rd Class $25 Bahamas via surface $20 to Abaco US$50 Canada via Airmail US$95 UK, Europe Surface Above subscription is a gift from: If you want to renew this gift next year, please give us your address below Mail to: 990 Old Dixie Hwy, #14, Lake Park, FL 33403 Or: P.O. Box AB 20551, Marsh Harbour, Abaco, Bahamas Apr 2006 Abaco Central High School. We hope to offer more educational programs such as Cosmetology, Auto Mechanics, Carpen- try, Academic Science, Business Studies, Commercial Arts, Academic Arts, Hotel Hospitality, Marine Biology and more to our students. It only takes a spark to get a fire going and we at the Great Abaco Cen- tral High School hope to flood the commu- nity of Abaco with a spirit of educational development. We are a community-minded school! We were able to establish a Parent Teachers Association board. Parents, I want to just take a minute and tell you how important it is for you to be involved in the school. I was very disappointed with our parental involvement this year. We are a school with over 500 students, and we had an average of seven parents attending our PTA meetings. Parents, please for the year 2007/2008 I implore you to please become more involved in your children’s educational experience. The Great Abaco Central High School has a culture of love, respect, loyalty, pride and goodwill among the staff and students. In every family there will be some disagreements at times; how- ever, throughout my career I have worked in five schools in this educational system and have yet to experience a finer bunch of people. Our students and staff are won- derful and I feel that the positive image of the Great Abaco Central High School has prevailed this school year. Again, thank you to The Abaconian, Radio Abaco and other media personnel and persons who have helped us by keep- ing a positive image of the school in the communities. We are a school built by the community and for the community. As I make my exit from this island and as Principal of the Great Abaco Central High School, I would like to leave a word of encouragement to you, the communities of Abaco, and to especially the students and staff of the Great Abaco Central High School. You must continue to persevere as you sail through this world of many seasons. You will have your rough seas; however, there is always a great calm af- ter the storm. You will have your critics; however, criticisms are for your growth. You will have your stumbling blocks; how- ever, stumbling blocks are stepping stones to higher heights. Believe that you are and you shall be; hold onto that which is dear to you; find your purpose and you will find contentment and finally; never pass up a chance to make a positive difference in the lives of your fellow man. I have served you all with God’s help to the best of my ability; I am satisfied to know that I have done my best as Principal of the Great Abaco Central High School and as a member of the Abaco communi- ties. God bless! I Love You All! Kendris D. Hield, Principal 2006-2007 Abaco Central High School Ads in The Abaconian Bring Results ayalt we cBderc' Tel: Don MacKay Blvd, Marsh Harbour, Abaco (242) 367-2701 —————— =, BACK TO 9€nes DA DQUA ER All you need for school and more! School bags & lunch bags Exercise Books & Dictionaries Scientific Calculators Geometry Sets Cool Pens, Pencils, Rulers & Eraser Art Supplies 4, _ \ Get a chance to wih a Mountain Bike or other £50 with every $50 spent on school supplies. —_