Teachers at Lawrence Tavern Primary School were honoured with digital devices and classroom technology during a Teachers’ Day celebration, held on the school grounds in St. Andrew on Wednesday (May 6).

Thirty-six teachers at the institution received laptops courtesy of the Flow Foundation, while the school was presented with a BlackPoint smartboard through a partnership involving BlackPoint and Imperial Appliances.

Speaking at the handover, Minister of Education, Skills, Youth and Information, Senator Dr. the Hon. Dana Morris Dixon, said the celebration served as an opportunity to recognise the important role teachers play in shaping the nation’s children.

The Minister said members of the Ministry team were able to visit classrooms and interact with students during the Teachers’ Day activities, noting that they saw “the best of Jamaica” through the work being done at the institution.

“When you go around the classrooms and you interact with the students, you see the best of Jamaica and it’s that way because of the teachers and the leadership of this institution,” she said.

Dr. Morris Dixon underscored that partnerships remain critical to improving the education system, noting that the Government welcomes support from corporate Jamaica.

“We can’t do education without partners,” the Minister said, while thanking BlackPoint and Imperial Appliances for supporting schools with smartboards and other resources.

She noted that the company is distributing 250 smartboards across the education system, with Lawrence Tavern Primary School being the first institution to benefit under the initiative.

“They’ve also said they’ll help us in other ways so we’re going to be expanding this partnership,” the Minister added.

Dr. Morris Dixon also expressed gratitude to the Flow Foundation for providing the teachers with laptops, explaining that the Ministry wanted to do something special for the educators in recognition of their dedication and service.

“We wanted to do something special for the teachers at Lawrence Tavern Primary… because they deserve it and it’s the least we could do,” she said.

The Minister pointed out that while the Ministry already has a programme to provide laptops for teachers, the devices presented during the Teachers’ Day celebration were intended as gifts to show appreciation to the staff.

Executive Director of the Flow Foundation, Rhys Campbell, said the organisation was pleased to support educators who continue to shape the lives of Jamaican children.

“Today…we’re giving 36 teachers brand-new laptops. We’re really excited about this because this is an opportunity for us to recognise the people who are changing the lives of our children and Jamaicans on a whole,” he said.

Meanwhile, Chief Executive Officer, BlackPoint and Imperial Appliances, Gul Mansukhani, said the company decided to assist schools after many educational institutions sustained damage during Hurricane Melissa.

He said the company imported 500 smartboards for schools across Jamaica, with 250 being handed over to the Ministry of Education for distribution to schools islandwide.

“The other 250 I personally will go and hand over to some of the schools in a couple months to come before September,” Mr. Mansukhani told JIS News.

He added that the initiative forms part of the company’s commitment to supporting education and helping schools recover following the hurricane.

For her part, Principal of Lawrence Tavern Primary School, Marlene Davis-Fairweather, described the occasion as a memorable and uplifting Teachers’ Day celebration for the school community.

“Today was really a wonderful Teachers’ Day here, as our school was chosen by the Minister and the team from Region One to share and celebrate our teachers here,” she said.

“Our teachers are really dedicated, hard-working teachers and have made an invaluable contribution to our community,” the Principal added.

Mrs. Davis-Fairweather said the laptops and smartboard will enhance teaching and learning at the institution.