AFTER 22 months of refurbishment, costing the state $10 million,St George’s College, Barataria, was reopened by the Ministry of Education on August 30.
But members of the school's parent, teachers and students association (PTSA) who viewed the school,expressed concern after it was seen to be in disrepair during a tour at the reopening ceremony.
The floors and hallways were all covered in dust. Water-soaked chairs were stacked in mountainous piles at the side of the building and in some classrooms. Labs and classes were either without chairs, exposed chipped and cracked tiles, or were filled with rusty desks.
The ceiling, one of the major issues that led to the school’s closure, was repaired for the most part, but in the auditorium where the ceremony was held, at least one ceiling tile was out of place.
[caption id="attachment_1105789" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Minister of Education Nyan Gasby-Dolly, right, observes a broken shutter at the auditorium of St George's College Barataria, as she takes a tour of the school on August 30. San Juan/ Barataria MP Saddam Hosein is on left. - Photo by Angelo Marcelle[/caption]
On the left side of the auditorium one massive casement window was unhinged and placed against a nearby wall, leaving a huge gap in the auditorium.
One person from the National Maintenance, Training and Security Company (MTS), contracted to do the repair work, was seen tucking loose wires into a hole in a wall near the hallway next to the auditorium.
PTSA president Dionne Cross, along with chairman of the local school board, St George’s College and treasurer of PTSA Cecily Maynard-James gave very low marks for the condition of the school at the opening.
“On a scale of one-ten, ten being highly satisfied, I would give it a one,” Cross said.
“I give it a negative one,” Maynard-James added. “You are talking about drains not cleaned, doors not repaired, water-soaked tables. Those are tables from back in 2022. From the time we left the school till now, those tables were still there in the hallway. Would you send your child to a school like that?
“Don’t take it the wrong way, we are not complaining.
"We are grateful that they fixed the ceiling, but what we are saying is we would like to have the school completed so children can come on the first day of school and see that this will be their new home. This is where they will be spending the majority of the day.”
They also complained of spotting classes with desks covered in rat faeces.
Cross complained that the school, on the whole, should have been better taken care of because of its rich history.
“I have no issue with the students coming back here. I am a former Georgian, so this is home. But this mess is not home.
“St Georges' is the first-ever co-ed school in this country. This is the first school that ever took in students with disabilities.
"It was the first school to have a lift (and wheelchair access). We had one child with one leg, who used crutches, and two other children who used wheelchairs.
"This school shou
