Knox College celebrates 75th anniversary

What a journey it has been for Knox College! Since opening its doors in 1947, the institution has grown significantly to a current population of 1,600 students. Founded by Rev Dr Lewis Davidson and David Bent under the auspices of the Presbyterian Church (now the United Church in Jamaica and the Cayman Islands, UCJCI), it is a co-educational boarding institution. The school is a part of a complex comprising a kindergarten (the Early Childhood Institute), a preparatory school (Knox Junior School), a secondary school (Knox College) and a community college (Knox Community College).

The current board chairman and alumna, Dorothy Miller, with the vice chairman, Stanhope Porteous, and other board members, provides governance oversight.

The school is led by principal and alumnus, Alexander Bourne, vice principals Maxine Josephs-Platt and Omar Smith and presently acting Vice Principal Judith Boswell. The school boasts one of the finest complement of teachers, administrative and support staff.

The Knox College students are named among a privileged cadre to attend one of the most sought-after high schools in Clarendon and, by extension, the wider Jamaican society.

ALUMNI INVOLVEMENT

The Past Students’ Association continues to embrace the school and its plans for continued growth and development. It continues to promote and project the institution here and in the diaspora. The Jamaica Chapter is led by Sandra Simmonds; the Florida Chapter, Leary Mullings; the New York Chapter, Michael Salmon and the Canadian Chapter, Rhona Dunwell.

The school has benefited from financial support used largely to upgrade the school’s infrastructure and has acquired educational support through books, tablets, computers and care packages. The gifts of the Past Students’ Association also come in the form of human resources as it makes available its celebrated speakers for our many functions held at the school, including the yearly David Bent and Lewis Davidson Lecture series as well as the Emerging Global Leaders of Jamaica leadership sessions. Their contributions to the students’ growth and development through sponsorship to these yearly events continue to be highly appreciated.

APPROACH TO EDUCATION

Knox College embraces a student-centred approach to education and requires that priority be given to each student’s needs. The school recognises each student’s uniqueness and continually strives to find innovative ways of engaging positively with everyone. The school’s guiding principle is that all students should be enabled to achieve their maximum potential. Regardless of ability, background, gender, or ethnicity, all students are provided with the same opportunities.

For students in grades seven to 11, the school offers a broad-based curriculum geared at equipping students for life. The school also operates a Sixth Form programme which allows students to pursue advanced-level programmes. The Knox College Sixth Form programme, after a long pause, restarted in 2008, offering only 13 units of CAPE. The then principal, Rev Dr Gordon Cowans, is known to have said when he convened his first meeting to begin the process of preparation, “the programme must be marketed so that students understand it is not an experiment but will be a permanent feature of the school.” Indeed, his words are still formidable today. The Sixth Form programme restarted with only 35 students but now has approximately 200 students. Among the first cohort was former head girl Danya Marshall, who was awarded the UWI Open Scholarship after completing the two-year programme. It is noteworthy that the first cohort produced the top two students in the island for CXC’s CAPE Caribbean Studies that year. The Sixth Form Programme has since grown exponentially, offering a multiplicity of disciplines; however, the programme is constrained by a space shortage.

ANNIVERSARY PROJECT

The space limitation at the school has given rise to an urgent need for a modern and dedicated Sixth Form block. Such is the gravity, importance, and urgency that the celebratory plans for Knox College’s 75th Anniversary are being centred on raising funds for this purpose. This project is estimated to cost $200 million. Various donors, including the Ministry of Education and the school’s business partners, are being pursued for assistance. The four chapters of the Alumni Association are also on board to assist with this venture.

The Knox Junior School and the Knox College in Spaldings, Clarendon, launched a year-long series of celebratory events under the theme, ‘Celebrating a Lasting Legacy, Empowered for the Future’. The 75th Anniversary Thanksgiving Service took place at the Webster Memorial United Church on Sunday, February 20, 2022.

It was a colourful backdrop of red and blue that draped the Webster Memorial United Church, led by Rev Astor Carlyle. He warmly welcomed the Knox College family as they celebrated the school’s 75 years of existence in the educational landscape of Jamaica. It was a thanksgiving!

Members of the Board of Governors, church officials of the United Church in Jamaica and the Cayman Islands, Ministry of Education officials, Members of Parliament for Northwest Clarendon and North East Manchester, past principals, members of staff, past students, current students, friends of Knox College, both in-person and online, graced us with their presence. It was particularly heart-warming to have seated in the front pew, adding her voice to the illustrious singing, alumna and Chief of Defence Staff, Rear Admiral Antonette Wemyss Gorman.

Rev Norbert Stephens, general secretary, UCJCI, took the congregation through a historical journey of the vision and mission of the founders, Rev Lewis Davidson and Mr David Bent. With confidence, he lauded the UCJCI for its excellent track record of combining learning with moral consciousness and civic responsibility.

Dr Kasan Troupe, chief education officer, deputised for Hon. Fayval Williams, minister of education. She praised Knox College for having “Star Principal, Alexander Bourne as their school leader.” In her greetings, she lauded the school for its consistently high standard of education delivered to its students and the impressive output by way of its CSEC and CAPE results yearly. She was careful to mention that Knox College in 2020 was given a rating of Exceptionally High (the highest rating given to a school in Jamaica by the National Education Inspectorate (NEI).

MATCHED EXPECTATIONS

Beaming with pride and celebrating the “Diamond Jubilee” for both institutions, Chairman of the Knox College School Board, Dorothy Miller, expressed, “In retrospect, any reasonable appraisal will posit that at Knox College, performance has always matched expectations.”

Guest speaker and alumnus Rt Rev Gary Harriott, moderator of the United Church in Jamaica and the Cayman Islands, delivered a soul-searching message. “The formation of our children,” he emphasised, “must be deliberate.” He stressed that, “our children when they leave the walls of the education system should leave not only academically competent, but morally and ethically grounded to ensure this, Jamaica land we love, remains a better place for all to live.”

Alumnus Errol Lee, manager of the Bare Essentials Band, rendered People Like You penned by Gramps Morgan. The Knox Ensemble, consisting of teachers, administrative staff and students, led celebration in praise, thanking God for 75 glorious years of existence for the school.

Constance Malcolm and Alexander Bourne, principals of Knox Junior and Knox College, respectively, in their prayer of Litany and Thanksgiving, thanked the stakeholders: the Church, the School Board, the Ministry of Education, all members of staff, alumni, parents, students and friends of the Knox Complex of Schools for their unwavering support over the past 75 years. They reminded all to continue the mission of our forefathers, Rev Dr Lewis Davidson and David Bent as they celebrate the lasting legacy while remaining empowered for the future.

ACHIEVEMENTS

The school boasts a strong record of academic achievement since its inception. Extracurricular activities have also flourished over the years, and students have participated in numerous inter-school competitions with tremendous successes.

The Only Co-educational Boarding School in Jamaica.

Knox College receives students from across the length and breadth of Jamaica and overseas on its campus. The award of a place as a boarding student at Knox College is a privilege. The demand for boarding spaces, especially for the boys, remains great. The benefits of boarding are highlighted from each visit of alumni who return to the school year after year.

There are a plethora of benefits for students who are boarders. These young scholars usually perform better academically because they live in an environment that is conducive to learning. They reside in a community where traits such as honesty, respect, and hard work are valued and emphasised. These pupils have a moral advantage. They become experts at managing their time, money and resources. Consequently, they mature quickly and tend to be very independent and successful in college and life. Boarding school students are known to graduate with exceptional character and values.