As Cayman Islands Further Education Centre – better known by its acronym ‘CIFEC’ – celebrates its first ‘good’ ranking from school inspectors, Education Minister Rolston Anglin has given an undertaking to expand its programme to two years.
In November last year, the Office of Education Standards gave the school – now based at its new location at the former John Gray High School campus on Academy Way – a good rating in its inspection report. On Monday, Anglin and other officials unveiled a sign outside the school denoting the achievement.
A ‘good’ result is the second highest rating a school can attain; the next level is ‘excellent’. In previous assessments, the school had been given a ‘satisfactory’ rating.
Minister promises additional year of paid internships
Anglin, who was minister for education when CIFEC was first established in 2010, promised gathered staff and students, that his vision for the school would be completed during the current political term.
“CIFEC was never intended to stop here,” he said. “My original vision for CIFEC was to have an additional year … of paid internships by the Cayman Islands government, where we work with the private sector in ensuring all of our students can get a placement, covered by the government.
“If we don’t create the pathways to employment, and ensure they are seamless, then we, as policymakers, will have failed in our responsibilities and our mandate.”
CIFEC caters to students attending mandatory Year 12 classes, either at the school’s own campus, or at other educational institutions, such as the University College of the Cayman Islands, St. Ignatius High School and Cayman Prep and High School, under the dual enrollment programme.
‘Important milestone’
Anglin said achieving the ‘good’ ranking from the Office of Education Standards was an “important milestone” for CIFEC, but said an ‘excellent’ ranking “must be the goal of every public school in the system”.
CIFEC had been meant to move to the former John Gray campus at the start of the 2024-2025 school year, but renovation work at the site had not been completed in time. The school could not remain at its original site on Walkers Road, which has since been demolished, after asbestos was found there, so students were temporarily taught at the Family Life Centre until the start of last year.
CIFEC’s acting director, Tiffany Rankine Lawe, said the improved rating by the Office of Education Standards inspectors recognised the work being done at the school and the success of its work placements through partnerships in the private sector.
“We just really want to celebrate all the work that has been going on, the wonderful work that that our students have been doing, and our wonderful staff,” she said.
Overcoming challenges
Acknowledging the disruptions the school had faced with moving sites, she said the professionalism of the facility’s staff had helped overcome those.
The school’s former director, Mark Seerattan, who oversaw recent transitions at the facility, including its move to the erstwhile John Gray High School campus last year, speaking at the event, acknowledged that “the reputation CIFEC has had over the last few years has not always been great, but great work is happening within the walls of CIFEC”.
He told the Compass, following the sign unveiling, that the achievement of the good rating was testament to the work and dedication of the staff at the school, despite the challenges it had faced. “CIFEC has shown fantastic resilience in our ability to shine and … surpass the expectations that many people in the community have,” he said.
Commending Anglin for indicating his ministry’s plan to expand the CIFEC programme, Seerattan said, “One of the challenges has been the fact that we’re a one-year programme. The type of in-depth courses that are necessary to move kids into the community, into the private sector, and gaining the required qualifications – the time that we have here [in one year] can only take them so far.
“So, if we are able to expand the programme, CIFEC will be producing the qualifications that are required for those students to jump straight into those jobs that are in demand within the community.”
Sarah McDougall, CIFEC’s art teacher and acting deputy director, said all of the approximately 250 students enrolled at the school this year have internship placements twice a week.
Inspection results
The report card from the Office of Education Standards outlined what the school did well. It noted that students’ attainment across a range of TVET subjects were good, and were excellent in several areas; that teaching was “consistently good across all subjects”; and that the centre provided a wide-ranging curriculum that met the needs of its learners.
It also highlighted CIFEC’s “positive learning environment [which] fostered mutual respect between adults and learners”, as well as the “strong partnerships with a large network of local businesses” which ensured students were able to access high-quality work placements.
The report also set out areas for improvement, which would need to be tackled if the school is to achieve an excellent rating. These included raising attainment of CSEC mathematics re-sits; using a newly introduced instructional coaching method to increase the proportion of ‘good’ and ‘excellent’ teaching; and implementing targeted strategies to raise attendance and improve punctuality.
It also recommended improving the quality of the facility’s learning environment by completing and making available workshop areas within this academic year.
Read the full report here.
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