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First JAA Junior Club at Jonathan Grant High

Published:Sunday | October 13, 2013 | 12:00 AM
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Tashieka Mckane (right), founding member of the JAA Junior Club at the Jonathan Grant High School, is pinned by Tracy-Ann Hall (left), faculty adviser and automotive technology teacher, while Roger Graham (centre), project manager of the JAA Junior Club, looks on. The club held its first meeting on September 11, where more than 36 students signed up to become members.
Roger Graham (right), project manager with the JAA Junior Clubs, addresses students of the Jonathan Grant High School during their inaugural club meeting held in September.-Contributed photos
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On September 11, the Jonathan Grant High School, Spanish Town, St Catherine, became the first school in Jamaica to launch a Jamaica Automobile Association (JAA) Junior Club, with an inaugural meeting and pinning ceremony for some of its 36 members.

The JAA Junior Club initiative is a creation of the JAA and the Jamaica National Building Society Foundation, in collaboration with JN General Insurance (JNGI) Company Limited, the Ministry of Education, the FIA Foundation and the FIA Road Safety Grant Programme.

Roger Graham, project manager for the JAA Junior Club, said the enthusiasm shown by students and teachers is encouraging and will contribute to the club's success.

"The students here at Jonathan Grant,have already shown their interest in road safety and advocacy; and, we will be working very closely with them to ensure that they accomplish the goals that they hope to achieve this year," Graham said.

Fifty other schools across Jamaica are set to launch JAA Junior Clubs over the next few months.

Tracy-Ann Hall, an automotive technology teacher at Jonathan Grant, is faculty advisor to the student members and will be guiding them in the administration of the club.

"We merged the JAA Junior Club with the Jonathan Grant Auto Club, whose objectives were aligned with those of the Junior Club," Hall pointed out, noting that the club is also "a co-curricular activity that will provide learning opportunities for students outside of the classroom".

"I believe that the JAA Junior Club will encourage the students to be more aware of the importance of the safety rules that govern the use of our roads, both as pedestrians and motorists," Hall said, noting that "students will also be engaged in meaningful projects to achieve positive changes and improve the safety of all students and teachers around them."

Atai Chin-Sang, a fourth-form student who is focusing on automotive technology, hopes to become a pilot. He said his involvement in the JAA Junior Club will help to increase his awareness of safety rules in the automotive workshop.

A Very Interactive Club

"It's a very interactive club that teaches me a lot about the road code and safety in general, and I am looking forward to working on projects that will help to improve road safety," he said.

Hall added "We plan to implement a Safety Education Campaign to educate students about the importance of being safe on roads, both as pedestrians and motorists".

The students have started working on a project which they hope will make their surroundings safer and will be lobbying for a sidewalk to be built before the entrance to the school.

"Currently, the students going to and from the school use the road, as there is no sidewalk for them, as they make their way into Spanish Town. And they walk with their backs turned to the vehicles driving on White Church Street," Hall said, outlining the dangers currently faced by students.