Strive for excellence

Principal of the Deighton Griffith School, Anthony Alleyne has told the 2018 Graduating Class, that the end of their secondary school lives is just the start of things to come.

Delivering remarks during the graduation ceremony held on Saturday evening at the Kingsland, Christ Church campus, Alleyne told the scores of students, that their graduation is the beginning of their young adulthood and it is imperative that after they have de-stressed over the summer and enjoyed the long holiday, they start to plan for the future.

“Someone once said success happens when preparation meets opportunity and I want to urge you to look forward to what is coming next, so that you can start to prepare yourself for that opportunity, so that you can grasp the success when it comes. So today boys and girls, it is a night to celebrate, but it is also a night to reflect and think about what will come next,” the principal advised them.

Alleyne’s comments came as he also encouraged the graduands to embrace teamwork, as he noted that whether at higher education institutions or in the workplace, cooperating with others will aid in their success.

“Even though success at the individual level is good, I believe that success at the team and collective level is so much sweeter. So I encourage you to please work with one another, work with others who you come across, realise that you cannot do anything by yourselves and that you will always need others to give you that leg up; and in the same way you should always try to help others. So even though ‘I’ is good, ‘We’ is better,” Alleyne stated.

Additionally, the principal urged them that as they embark on the next step of their lives, not to forget Deighton Griffith School family and the foundation the 26-year old school helped to lay for them. He also took the opportunity to encourage them to come back, give back and to be a part of the institution.

“Nelson Mandela once said that education is perhaps the greatest weapon that can be used to change the world and tonight I want to challenge you graduands wherever you may go, whatever you plan to do, see how you can change your world for the better – one house, one avenue, one community, one workplace at a time. Please, remember the values we instilled in you – discipline, integrity, spirituality, teamwork, respect, excellence and accountability – they will carry you far,” he maintained.

With that in mind, he further urged them to find ways to unleash their potential and to let the world know that each of them is a “powerful, positive young person leaving their footprint in the sand.” (JRT)