Topic: Ministry of Education
YMCA after-school program contract renewed
The Ministry of Education has renewed the Young Men’s Christian Association contract to manage and operate its Extended After-School Program.
Cayman agencies to attend US child abuse forum
Seven government agencies and independent organizations from the Cayman Islands that work to help combat child abuse will be represented at an international forum in the United States next month.
Special education needs audit delayed
An audit of special education needs students slated for the 2016-2017 academic year was never completed and is now being delayed until the 2018-2019 school year.
Ministry signs agreement with UCCI
The dust-up between the Ministry of Education and the University College of the Cayman Islands is not over, but on Wednesday, UCCI’s board of governors was presented with a signed copy of an ownership and purchase agreement it had been asking for.
UCCI: Government ignoring requests
Officials at the University College of the Cayman Islands say they feel a bit invisible these days. They can’t seem to get the government to return their calls.
30 goverment agencies get ‘clean’ audits
Thirty of 42 Cayman Islands government entities received the highest possible rating on audits of their finances during the 2015/16 budget year, Auditor General Sue Winspear reported Tuesday.
2017 editorials: The Compass’s voice on significant issues
Today we feature highlights from some of what we consider to be the most compelling and important editorials that appeared in the Cayman Compass in 2017, dealing with some of the most pressing matters facing our country.
Stalemate continues over UCCI control
The Ministry of Education and UCCI Board of Governors remain at loggerheads over control of programming at the campus, and it appears they will likely remain so until a ruling by the solicitor general on the matter.
New round of school inspections
Three years after a comprehensive set of inspections found only two of Cayman’s 15 public schools performing at a “good” level – 10 were deemed “unsatisfactory” – a new round of inspections is under way.
Mothballed John Gray High School project revived
Work on the new John Gray High School is not expected to resume until mid-2019, with a multi-stage assessment process planned over the next two years to determine the best way to complete the project.
Applications for early childhood assistance open
The Ministry of Education is accepting financial assistance applications for its Early Childhood Assistance Programme fund for Caymanian children who were born between Sept. 1, 2013 and Aug. 31, 2014.
Cayman schools taking in hurricane evacuees
British Overseas Territories residents who have evacuated from the eastern Caribbean to Cayman in the wake of Hurricanes Irma and Maria will be able to send their children to local schools.
New minister: Greater resources, accountability for public schools
Juliana O’Connor-Connolly promised to fight for a minimum $5,000 a month salary for teachers in a rousing first speech as Cayman’s education minister that was greeted with a standing ovation Tuesday morning. The majority of teachers are paid between $3,500 and $4,800 per month, according to a 2011 government report.
Empty mobile units to become classrooms
Two empty mobile units outside George Town Primary School are being relocated to the Lighthouse School where they will be transformed into classrooms for vocational courses.
EDITORIAL – How much has gov’t spent on the John Gray gym?
How much has the Cayman Islands government spent on the construction of the new John Gray High School gym?
Education session invites public-private partnership
Stakeholders gathered at the Chamber of Commerce Wednesday in an effort to unite private and public initiatives to address Cayman’s myriad educational needs.
Ministry of Education announces two senior appointments
The Ministry of Education has appointed Lyneth Monteith as director of the Department of Education Services, and Cetonya Cacho has been named as deputy chief officer of education policy and planning.
Exclusions from school down sharply
The number of children excluded from school for bad behavior has decreased dramatically in the past year amid a new approach to classroom discipline. According to statistics from the Ministry of Education, 395 days were lost to exclusions in the first term of the 2015/16 academic year.
Second teacher on required leave at West Bay primary school
A second teacher at West Bay’s Sir John A. Cumber Primary School is currently on “required leave” following an alleged assault on a student, education officials confirmed Thursday.
New Sunrise Adult Training Centre plans advance
Plans for a new Sunrise Adult Training Centre will move forward under the initiative of local project development company Rider Levett Bucknall, the Cayman Islands government said this week.
Ministry celebrates Women’s Entrepreneurship Day
The Ministry of Education, Employment and Gender Affairs will host a Lunch and Learn session on Nov. 30 for women entrepreneurs and anyone who is considering starting a business. The event recognizes Women’s Entrepreneurship Day, which is commemorated globally in November.
Cleaners, security staff to be school role models
Cleaners, bus wardens and security guards are joining a school-wide effort to improve student behavior at John Gray High School.
John Gray teacher acquitted of indecent assault loses job
A John Gray High School teacher who was found not guilty of indecent assaults on students has lost his job at the school, officials confirmed. The teacher, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was unanimously acquitted last month on charges that he had assaulted three female students.
Cayman Finance celebrates student education, work program
The second year of the Cayman Finance Student Education and Work Experience Programme has concluded after nine weeks of workshops and mentor sessions and a four-week work placement component.
EDITORIAL – Speaking up for West Bay’s schoolchildren
How can issues as obvious as broken equipment, “debris,” and mold be present in a primary school in a country as wealthy as ours, within a public education system as well-funded as ours? And, for the record, smack in the backyard of Education Minister Tara Rivers?
‘Interventions’ aim to lift reading ability
Interventions helped 86 percent of Year 1 students in the public school system meet the expected literacy level for their age group in the last academic year – the first time the intensive intervention program has been used in Cayman’s schools.
EDITORIAL – Minister Rivers takes a ‘pass’ on schools report
Education Minister Tara Rivers appears to be missing, or willfully overlooking, the central point of the report her own government commissioned — that Cayman’s government should get out of the business of running schools altogether.
Officials: ‘No school paper shortage’
Government insists there is no shortage of basic resources like paper, printer toner and pencils in public schools.
Officials: Holding failing students back is ineffective
Holding failing students back a year simply does not work, education officials said Monday as they outlined plans to expand literacy and numeracy interventions for children struggling to meet expected standards for their age.
EDITORIAL – Goodbye, summer Hello, school year
For most children, parents and educators in the Cayman Islands, this weekend is an annual milestone — the final halcyon days of summer before the start of the new school year.
Funding approved for 50 new public school positions
Cabinet has approved additional funding for 50 new posts across the public school system, Education Minister Tara Rivers announced Wednesday.
Plan advances for new Sunrise center
The Ministry of Education is preparing an outline business case to develop a new Sunrise Adult Training Centre facility, with the aim of moving the program to a purpose-built building with more space for clients.
Education issues laid bare
Wonder what percentage of the kids at Clifton Hunter know the definition of the word hubris or the story of “The Emperor’s New Clothes.” Better yet, how many of our political leaders know the definition or the story?
EDITORIAL – School woes not just ‘on paper’
We’ve all heard of, “No more pencils, no more books” — but no more paper?
PTAs cite lack of school resources
A “recurring issue” of a lack of paper at schools in the Cayman Islands is one of the grievances highlighted by parents at a forum with education officials.
$1.6M for overseas scholarships
The government is funding $1.6 million in scholarships for Caymanian students to study overseas in the coming school year.
Savannah Primary PTA petitions for more resources
The Savannah Primary School Parent Teacher Association is set to deliver a petition to the Ministry of Education Tuesday asking the government to allocate more money to the school, which they say is struggling due to inadequate resources.
EDITORIAL – When 98 percent of NWDA clients are ‘not work ready’ …
The prospects of employment for the out-of-work Caymanian population are (pick your own description) “not pretty,” “challenging” or “grim.”
EDITORIAL – Three bright lights in Cayman schools
Amid the general darkness that lingers over our country’s educational system, we are able to point to many individual points of light — both students and teachers. In this editorial, we will single out three Cayman Islands educators.
Lighthouse School names new principal
Lighthouse School will have a new principal when the school year begins in September, the Ministry of Education announced Monday.
Student excluded over school assault
A Clifton Hunter High School student alleged to have assaulted a teacher has been excluded from the school while police continue to investigate the incident.
New principal for John Gray High School
British educator Jonathan Clark has taken over as the principal of Grand Cayman’s John Gray High School.
EDITORIAL – New leadership at John Gray: A matter of principal
The government's "official" announcement of one of the most significant developments in Cayman Islands education to occur in many months was delivered via a photo on Facebook, accompanied by a seven-word caption — including one spelling error.
EDITORIAL – The real crime at the new John Gray
Stealing from a school is a near equivalent to robbing the poor box at a church. In other words, schools should be hallowed ground.
Construction materials stolen from unfinished high school
The Royal Cayman Islands Police Service is investigating the theft of construction materials, including copper wire, from a storage area on the John Gray High School construction site.
Commission considers legal, policy moves to address bullying
A new issue paper from the Law Reform Commission shines the spotlight on the age-old issue of bullying and new problems with online cyberbullying.
Scholarships available
The Ministry of Education and the Maritime Authority of the Cayman Islands have announced that there are tertiary scholarships available.
Caymanian hired to manage operations at Cayman’s YMCA
YMCA Cayman has hired Caymanian Gillian Roffey as its director of operations.
A month-by-month roundup of Cayman’s 2015 news stories
Top stories of 2015 in the Cayman Islands
Top stories of 2015: The year of the report
The theme for government in 2015 may well have been “The Year of the
Report.” Ministers and civil servants have been going through a yearlong
review of the EY Report, which calls for numerous government reforms.
Clifton Hunter value: $69.2 million
The Cayman Islands government lost $41.6 million on the construction of Clifton Hunter High School between the date the school opened and the time a valuation of the North Side property was completed in May 2013.
Sunrise Christmas Concert brings community together
It was once again standing room only at the Sunrise Adult Training Centre’s annual Christmas concert at the John Gray Memorial Church hall in West Bay Church, one of the organization’s long-standing community partners.
School aide denies indecently assaulting schoolgirls
A former teacher’s aide pleaded not guilty Thursday to 10 charges of indecent assault on seven primary schoolgirls.
Cayman Finance holds inaugural members briefing
Cayman Finance held its first members briefing last week to outline its plans for 2016 and to demonstrate its value to the financial services industry.
School aide 'fit to plead' in indecent assaults on girls
The man accused in a series of indecent assaults on girls at a primary school where he worked is fit to enter a plea, Magistrate Valdis Foldats said during a brief hearing Thursday morning.
Crime prevention program up against funding crisis
There’s an audible intake of breath as officer Anthony Stewart pulls out the black replica pistol. If he did not have the class’s attention before, he does now.
Clifton Hunter: How low can it go?
When faced with a poor valuation report, the Ministry of Education resorted to government's usual modus operandi — "rewrite and revise."
Health Services fails to collect $120 million since 2005
A number of government agencies have missed out on the collection of tens of millions of dollars.
School worth $20M-$40M less than it cost
The Cayman Islands government spent $110 million on the construction of a public high school that was initially valued at somewhere between $70 million and $85 million in a report completed during 2012.
Clifton Hunter High School: Valued at $20M less than building cost
Clifton Hunter High School has been valued at “at least” $20 million less than what it cost to build, Acting Auditor General Garnet Harrison confirmed.
The uncomfortable truth about unemployment
The relationship between “work permits” and “work” continues to be erroneously overstated in the Cayman Islands.
Lawsuit claims student hit teacher with chair
A former teacher in the Cayman Islands Education Department who alleges she was hit in the face with a chair by a student has filed a lawsuit against the Ministry of Education and the government.
Accountants honor past and future leaders
The Cayman Islands Society of Professional Accountants celebrated 45 years at its annual gala Saturday at The Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman.
Business in brief
KeyTech Ltd. and CellOne to combine operations; The Security Centre Ltd. celebrates new office opening; Cayman Finance’s student program a success; Harneys opens Bermuda office; Maples and Calder grants scholarships to six Caymanians; Caymanian seconded to Intertrust Hong Kong
CISPA honors pioneers and new accountants
The Cayman Islands Society of Professional Accountants celebrated both newcomers to the profession and pioneers of the industry at the organization’s annual gala event on Saturday at The Ritz-Carlton.
Michael Austin, Paul Harris, Chris Johnson and Paul Sleep, four of the original six members who signed CISPA’s memorandum and articles of association 45 years ago, received the first CISPA Pioneers Awards.
The honorees were joined by four newly qualified accountants, Matthew Hale,
Jerrica Merren, Claire O’Dea and Taylor Wright, who recently received
their professional designations, and six graduates with Bachelor’s
Degrees in Accounting from the International College of the Cayman
Islands or the University College of the Cayman Islands.
Teachers make schools great — Buildings don't
When confronted with failing schools, many officials begin searching for a quick (usually expensive) fix. The trouble is, there is no such thing.
Open-plan classrooms a problem at Clifton Hunter
School administrators are tailoring the timetable at Clifton Hunter High School to help cope with teaching problems caused by the open-plan classroom layout, described as an “urgent problem” by inspectors.
An inspection report on the school highlighted the experimental layout at the new $110 million facility as a barrier to improvement.
Head of the class: Chief Officer Christen Suckoo
Mr. Suckoo, it’s your turn to present.
Key government posts in limbo
The senior ranks of Cayman's civil service are filled with "acting," but not the Hollywood kind.
