As the St Andrew’s Private School in Maraval prepares to celebrate its 70th anniversary gala at MovieTowne on September 23, one of the school’s alumni, Tara Lisa Persaud, Business Climate co-ordinator, Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Barbados, spoke about her experiences at the school.
She attended the school as a pupil from 1980 to 1986 and also returned as a teacher’s assistant from 1994 to 1995, before she left for Wellesley College, Massachusetts, USA. When asked what were some of her fondest memories at the school, Persaud said, “I loved St Andrew’s, I loved being there as a child.
“I made a lot of very good friends. It was a very cosmopolitan group, and they were a very happy seven years combined as a student and teacher at the school.
“The teachers were all so very caring and kind even in the smallest things.
“I loved performing in school concerts. We did a concert at the end of the year and a Christmas concert.” She said whether the pupils were singing, dancing or putting on plays, everybody was involved and she enjoyed that, it was really a lot of fun as well.
Persaud said at prize-giving ceremonies, everyone also was part of these and when the children put their artwork on display, their parents came to see what they did. She said it was very inclusive at St Andrew’s and parents, teachers and students were involved in school activities.
Persaud said she felt very proud as a child to show off what they had done at the school. She said some of her very best memories were just playing at school. Persaud used to play marbles at lunch time and skipping rope; she remembered the teachers would have large, long skipping ropes.
“It was just a happy time,” she said.
Persaud said when she attended the school as a student, Kathleen Whitehouse was the principal from 1977 to 1982, Helen Acanne from 1982 to 1987, and while she was a teacher’s assistant, Angela Agarrat was the principal from 1988 to 2002. She participated in gymnastics at the school and her favourite subjects were English, geography and science.
Persaud said even though she came first in her class, the pupils did not like exams in general. She said she was involved in activities such as the Girl Guides choir, ballet, while some of her friends did art and music and her brother participated in football.
She said while St Andrew’s geared the pupils towards academic success, they were also given the opportunity to cultivate their talent, whether it be in art, music, sport or languages such as French and Spanish.
Persaud said as the school celebrates its milestone achievement, she sincerely believed her childhood would have been very different if she had not gone to St Andrew’s. She said she was very lucky to be part of it and it laid the foundation for the rest of her life.
Bovell: March past an interesting experience
St Andrew’s alumnus T&T Olympic athlete George Bovell says his fondest memories were playing catch (tag) in the courtyard with other children.
“The art competitions, Christmas Fair, Sports Day at the stadium, three travellers in the Christmas play.
“Looking back, I actually enjoyed singing altogether in unison early in the morning at assemblies.”
He said the sports he played in school were tennis and swimming and all the events of its annual sports day. Bovell said he also participated in the march past which was an interesting experience. He said Angela Agarrat was the principal at the time.
On his favourite subjects, Bovell said most of it blurred into Common Entrance preparation to be honest, but science with Mrs McCartney stood out and was wonderful. Bovell said he vividly remembered Mrs McCartney’s fish tanks and growing the space tomatoes and eating them with everyone.
He said his science teacher aroused in him a profound curiosity about nature and the reality around it. Bovell said his general attitude towards St Andrew’s was one of gratitude and nostalgia from the fond memories of his formative years there.
He said he did not enjoy the absurd amount of homework in primary four and five classes.
Bovell said in this regard, he believed the country’s education system robbed T&T’s youth of enjoying the natural vitality and spontaneity of childhood.
When asked about the extracurricular activities he participated in, he said the pupils garnered understanding about their “new” world by participating in the carefully chosen class outings were wonderful.
Bovell said he attended First Communion classes with Ms Moses.