Nestled in the hills of Claremont, St Ann, Ferncourt High is on a drive to excellence, and the administrators there are especially proud of the empowerment programme at its Brittonville campus, the first such initiative by a traditional high school. The programme targets students who were not placed after the Grade Six Achievement Test (GSAT) and were admitted to the high school through the Grade Nine Achievement Test (GNAT) and the Alternative Secondary Transition Education Programme (ASTEP).

IT is pretty clear that Monique Grant-Facey, principal of the Portland-based Happy Grove High School, is determined to get the best out of students whose future she has been entrusted to shape and guide.