MINISTER responsible for Education, Innovation, Gender Relations and Sustainable Development Hon. Dr. Gale Rigobert has lauded the Saint Lucia Sports Academy as the school of choice for students seeking to enhance their sporting career.
Rigobert at the time was addressing members of the media at the official launch of the 2020 Gale Rigobert T10 Cricket Tournament which bowled off last Saturday.
“What we do in the Ministry of Education is everybody’s business and you could recall on assuming office one of the things that we were very forceful about was the need to ensure that our curriculum meet the various interest skills and talents of our students,” Rigobert said.
Dr.Rigobert disclosed, “We have come to appreciate by and large a very universal or standard curriculum, but for very long we have lamented the fact that we need to cater to other interests. We at the ministry therefore agreed that we would establish centres of excellence; there were two in particular that we focused on, what we now have as the Sports Academy and a Centre of Excellence for Creative Industries, Culture which was earmarked for the Anse Ger Secondary School in Desruisseaux”.
She added, “I recall very fondly that at the first consultation at the Gros Islet Secondary School when we brought together stakeholders from the various sporting disciplines it was evident from the various contributions presented that we were on the right path”.
According to Dr.Rigobert, “Almost two years on, we can begin to celebrate the early evidence of success not only at the CXC Level, given that last Friday, Madam Principal, Mrs. Charles, coaches and the staff reminded us how well her students did in physical education in particular and incidentally in other subject areas too. We have known as educators that when students do what they like, they also excel at the other things on the menu, and I think already we are seeing evidence of that.”
“The meeting last Friday also allowed us to review at the Sports Academy and what is yet to be accomplished, admittedly the development of the infrastructure is delayed and at that meeting we reiterated the importance of getting this done,” she said.
Dr.Rigobert continued, “The consultants, they are on island, they have been engaged in Soufriere and Micoud South after which they will be heading to the Sports Academy in Gros Islet to attend to the physical infrastructure and the completion of that aspect of the Sports Academy”.
“With respect to the curriculum, mentorship and other skills set as it pertains to the holistic development of our sportsmen and women we are well on our way with that, so it’s really for the physical infrastructure to catch up,” she noted.
“I trust that the excitement and passion that I witnessed on Friday at that meeting went quickly throughout the society in celebrating what we are doing at the Sports Academy and I have to recall the many parents and students who I greeted on the eve of the reopening of school when parents were bringing in their children to the academy. I know we are on to great things out there,” she said.
“To the public, the Sports Academy is fast becoming a school of choice for our young sportsmen and women and I pray that as we develop the other aspects of the academy we would be able to improve in medals and titles and we have made the right decision for the young people of Saint Lucia,” Minister Rigobert said.
