BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – MINISTER OF EDUCATION the Hon. Shawn Richards yesterday (Aug. 19) declared that for the new school year, students of the Basseterre High School (BHS) would continue to be housed in temporary accommodations until a new school is built.
Over the past two terms, BHS staff and students have been sharing the Washington Archibald High School’s facilities on a shift system with their counterparts of that learning institution.
The system had however produced numerous challenges according to Minister Richards, who identified some of them as the reduction of teacher to student contact time, limited participation in extracurricular activities and the growing concern of parents of the limited supervision of their children.
As a result of those challenges, he stated that the Government aims to bring an end to the shift system.
Minister Richards said the Government had collaborated with a number of stakeholders concerning alternative and temporary arrangements to house the students in several locations within a small radius.
“The First Formers, along with the staff, will be accommodated at the Warner Park Cricket Stadium. It is proposed that the Second Formers will be accommodated in spaces at the Methodist School room and negotiations are underway. The Third Formers will be housed in an already constructed building that will be moved from the grounds of the Basseterre High School to the parking lot area at the Washington Archibald High School,” the Education Minister said.
He pointed out that the building which is earmarked to house the Third Formers would be completely sanitised before the students take possession of it.
He added that the Fourth Formers would be provided space at the Washington Archibald High School, while the Fifth Formers would continue to occupy the space at the Premier Dental building that they used during the last term.
“Children in learning-support classes will be housed in spaces at the Zion Moravian Church Complex. Additional auxiliary staff will be deployed to the Basseterre High School to facilitate security and effective transitioning of students and teachers throughout the school day,” Richards explained.
He informed that a further meeting would be convened shortly with the Parent Teachers Association and the two learning institutions to discuss the arrangements.
Richards promised that the housing arrangement for the First and Second Formers as well as their staff is expected to only last for the first term, as construction would very shortly commence on buildings “to more comfortably and adequately accommodate these persons”.
Richards, who is also the Federation’s Deputy Prime Minister, said the Government has been apprising a number of structures to house the students.
“Over the past weeks, the Government has been evaluating several different solutions with regard to temporary structures. It looked at bringing module units out of the United States at a cost of over EC$4M. It also looked at constructing wooden buildings at a cost of approximately EC$3M. The pros and cons of each building type were evaluated by the stakeholders, along with technical persons, within and outside of the Government.
“A decision has now been taken by the Cabinet to build three new building blocks with six classrooms in each building at a temporary site. These buildings will be a hybrid of the modular and wooden-type and are budgeted at a cost of EC$3.3M.”
He said that each building would be connected by wire-canopy links, outfitted with water heater/coolers and sinks.
Additionally, they would contain seating arrangements, air-conditioning and ceiling fans along with fire extinguishers, as well as an 800-gallon vertical potable water tank with a pump system attached to each of them. Space will also be provided for waste enclosure and a galvanised chain-link fence will be erected around the premises.
Richards claimed that the structures are expected to be completed within 15 weeks and would be ready to accommodate the students in the second school term in January.
Earlier in his address, which was aired on ZIZ TV and Radio, the Education Minister noted that following complaints of health issues, a number of reputable agencies had conducted tests at the school.
“These agencies did not find any sole causative factor, but reported that the problem seemed to be related to the school’s environment and were multi-factorial in nature. The former Government attempted to rectify the issues; however, the health issues continued unabated.
“Subsequently, in May 2015, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), an American agency, conducted tests which identified areas that needed further remedial work. Hence, all of the reports have so far been inconclusive as to the reason behind the many illnesses and problems encountered by the staff and students of the Basseterre High School.
“The Government of National Unity has decided that in all on the side of caution, the health and well-being of students and staff of the Basseterre High School are of paramount importance to us and we will build a new school. It is not the intention of this Government to continue to put the health of these citizens of St. Kitts and Nevis at risk.”
