Construction of Thibaud Primary School progresses in Dominica

Roseau, Dominica: The construction of Thibaud Primary School is progressing well, with Prime Minister Dr. Roosevelt Skerrit calling it a center of continuous education. During a site visit on Tuesday, he said that once completed, the school will serve the wider community.

The primary school is one of five primary schools and six schools being constructed by the government of People’s Republic of China as part of the Chinese aid program. This is in response to the devastation caused by Hurricane Maria which damaged the schools and the community is looking forward to the new school.

PM Dr Skerrit noted, “My hope is that those schools are being built so that we can turn them into centres of continuous education where we can have night classes for adults. It will help us make better use of the investments and just from 9 to 3 or 5 days a week, and then during the summer time no use of it, so we will be using it properly.”

The school will be named after former parliamentary representative Vernice Bellony as the decision was taken with the support of the cabinet. PM Skerrit said that the decision is aimed at recognizing her contribution for the development of the constituency and Dominica as a whole.

The school has been dubbed a centre of excellence for special education. Minister for education Octavia Alfred said that she is pleased with the emphasis that has been made for students with special needs and disabilities.

Minister Alfred added, “It is really not about getting all the children in Dominica with special needs and putting them in one place because the world has moved away from that kind of setting. Dominica didn’t stay behind because as of now all the children with special needs can be in normal classrooms.”

She said that these students will have a special teacher assigned to them, so each of these students have their own teachers sitting next to them. All the new schools built after Hurricane Maria in Dominica have facilities for students with special needs, including accessible washrooms.

Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Education Fenella Wenham said that by creating a learning space for students with special needs, the government has reaffirmed its belief that every child is critical to Dominica’s development.

She said, “We believe that every child, every Dominican can make a contribution to our society, to Dominica. This space is one that is quite conducive, it’s not yet complete, but you can already see the functionality that this space will have.”

Wenham noted that the space will definitely enhance students' performance.