Student leaders urged to do the right thing

he latest group of prefects at Ellerslie Secondary have been called on to hone their leadership skills as student leaders at the Black Rock, St Michael school.

That was the call of Principal Andrea Baptiste who shared her expectations of students on Monday. She counted it a privilege for these students to have been selected.

“Not only will they be good examples for their peers but clearly, this is also for personal development as it relates to leadership,” she said. “I said to them this morning that they are going to be the future leaders of tomorrow. I was a deputy head girl right here at this school, my alma mater, and here I am now. Therefore, I expect that quite a few of them will also have that trajectory where they hone their leadership skills by being part of the student leadership at the school.”

Managing Partner at Deloitte Barbados, Ikin Clarke, an Ellerslie alumnus, encouraged the prefects to take advantage of the opportunity to be an example to their peers: “There is a big opportunity here for you to set the right example. Those at the top have to do the right thing.”

He also reminded students that while the school is not isolated from negativity and violence, they can take a stand.

“A lot of those problems are manifested in the school, whether it be violence, misbehaviour. You have to show others that you are not going to be participating in those kinds of behaviours,” Clarke said.

He dared the student leaders to discourage their peers from wrongdoing: “You cannot be a coward. If you are not willing to tell on a friend who has done something wrong, you are not willing to speak up.”

Baptiste, noting the increased violence in Barbados, told students they must do what is right.

The principal assured parents and the student leadership team of the support system available to them.

“We will support them, we will show visibility, we will highlight the fact that they can call us when we need to assist them,” she said.

Carol Ann Scott, a parent, said her son being selected was a momentous occasion for him. She hopes the role will encourage him to be focused and set a positive example for his peers.

“For him, it would be good because he lost his dad in May and I think it would give him some sort of responsibility and some pride instead of feeling down,” she said. (LG)