Principal of Queen’s College, Dr. David Browne.
Dr. David Browne, Principal of Queen’s College, has made a call for school leavers to join the Old Scholars’ Association and continue to be productive citizens.
He was speaking at the Queen’s College and the Queen’s College Association (QCA) joint assembly in the school hall yesterday where he invited the Upper Sixth students to join the association and continue the tradition of the old scholars. Dr. Browne indicated that all over the world, people are proud of their alma mater and continue their support, and he urged young people to get involved.
“We in the Caribbean are very slow in recognising the contribution of our institutions in providing sound citizenship. We want to see a tradition of being part of the old scholars not only at Queen’s College, but throughout the Caribbean,” he noted.
He assured the QCA, “Queen’s College is still a place of serious business. We maintain a strong academic tradition and we have answered the call of those that are afraid of what is happening not only in Jamaica and Trinidad, but also in the Eastern Caribbean. There are citizens that seem not to understand their role of being productive citizens. There is the criticism that some of these individuals are behaving the way they are behaving because the education system has failed them, therefore they are walking around and shooting and killing; I don’t believe that. However, there is a call from schools to do more; we have implemented programmes to do more than the academic to help produce the soft skills that they need in the wider world of work.”
Registrar of the Supreme Court, Madam Justice Barbara Cooke-Alleyne, while speaking at her alma mater, stressed the need for young persons to make good decisions.
She noted, “In life you have many choices, you are either the passenger or the pilot, what do you want to be? There are persons that influence you such as parents, teachers, but you have to choose your path. Excellence is a choice, you just can’t wake up and not study and believe you will do well. You can choose to do what is right, choose to do what is good, choose to study, choose not to do drugs, choose friends that will uplift you and choose not to abuse social media. These choices are in your hands.”
Cooke-Alleyne advised the students, “You have to set your goals. Your goals can change, they are not static, but you have to be prepared to work hard… You have the control to make the best choices. Rise above the negative comments you may get from some persons and strive to achieve excellence. We all have different talents and it is important you believe in yourself.” (NB)