WESTERN BUREAU:
Schools within the Ministry of Education’s [MOE] Region 4 zone in western Jamaica are among Jamaica’s various educational institutions which will have their planned examination and graduation schedules moved up in light of the impending threat of Hurricane Beryl to the island.
Dr Michelle Pinnock, the regional director of Region 4, which encompasses St James, Hanover, and Westmoreland, gave The Gleaner the update following a meeting with the MOE which was held on Monday afternoon.
“Those schools that would have had exams scheduled, they made adjustments to their exam schedule so that they would end on July 3. And for those schools that would have had graduation for tomorrow (Tuesday), most of them have adjusted their time to start earlier, and they have adjusted their programmes to ensure they run in an efficient way. They are wanting to start their programmes earlier and complete them earlier as well,” said Pinnock.
Jamaica has been placed under a hurricane watch as of Monday with regard to Hurricane Beryl, which is currently listed as a Category 5 hurricane, the first one to form in the Atlantic for the 2024 hurricane season which began on June 1.
The Meteorological Service has projected that hurricane conditions are possible for the island within the next 48 hours from Monday, with an increase in rainfall starting on Wednesday, along with storm surges and flooding, mainly along the southern coastline.
In a bulletin issued to MOE regional directors, school board chairmen and principals, the MOE advised that due to the inclement weather, schools are to be closed for the summer period, commencing July 3, instead of the previously scheduled July 5.
Pinnock also told The Gleaner that with several schools being used as emergency shelters, efforts will have to be made to facilitate the smooth start of the upcoming summer school programme, beginning next Monday, July 8.
“For the schools that are being used as shelters, the shelter managers and principals are in dialogue as it relates to using designated areas on the school plants. We are hoping that they will be able to do clean-up, because summer school actually starts on Monday, July 8. So we are going to see, based on what happens, if we would be able to clean up and be ready for summer school on July 8. But failing that, we will actually have a number of sessions online,” said Pinnock.
Of the 889 designated shelters across Jamaica, 148 schools are listed as shelters within the MOE’s Region 4 division. These include 61 in Westmoreland, 45 in St James, and 42 in Hanover.
christopher.thomas@gleanerjm.com