Nickayla Stephens, Grade 9 Student at Saint Elizabeth Technical High School, Santa Cruz, Saint Elizabeth, Jamaica.
Beersheba Old Students Association (BOSA) received the following two text messages at 2:50 PM and 2:52 PM on Sunday, October 13, 2013 from Nickayla Stephens from the impoverished, poverty stricken, peasant farming district of Flint Valley, New Market, Saint Elizabeth, Jamaica West Indies, age 14 years, grade 9 student at Saint Elizabeth Technical High School (STETHS) and a qualified beneficiary of James Richards Educational Trust Fund for which Beersheba Primary School (Government Leased) is the new Trustee after the balance of JMD 6,856,029.84 remaining in the Fund was legally transferred by Bermuda Trust Company Limited by way of a Deed Of Appointment And Termination on November 03, 2011:
Quote: “I’m not going to school tomorrow and maybe Tuesday or not until next week>” “I don’t have the money to go to school and I don’t know if my Aunt will be able to send me both this and next week.” Unquote
Beersheba Old Students Association (BOSA) has been the safety net from September 2010 for Nickayla Stephen’s who resides in a small one room space with her mentally ill mother. Since the Chairman of the School Board at Beersheba Primary School (Government Leased wrote to the Association directing it not to incur any further expenditure for Nickayla’s school expenses, the Association has brought Nickayla’s plight to the Chairman School Board of Beersheba Primary School (Government Leased), Regional Director, Region 5, Ministry of Education, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education, Chief Education Officer, Chief Inspector, National Education Inspectorate, Ministry of Education, and Principal Saint Elizabeth Technical High School (STETHS), requesting them to immediately intervene and investigate the reasons that Nickayla is left to fend for herself as a qualified beneficiary of James Richards Educational Trust Fund.
Notwithstanding the directive that Beersheba Old Students Association (BOSA) has received from the Chairman of the School Board at Beersheba Primary School (Government Leased), rather than allowing its voice to be silenced and forced into oblivion, the Association has not ceased to use its scarce diminishing financial resources to do the following in the enhancement of Nickayla’s interest and welfare:
1. Provided electricity to the small room space where Nickayla resides with her mentally ill mother. Provision of electricity replaced the “kitchen bitch” and light from “Mass Ran” Nickayla grandfather’s cellular phone that she used to study her lessons at night when kerosene oil ran out in the “kitchen bitch.”
2. Provided Nickayla with uniforms, school shoes, notebooks, pens, and pencils since September 2010.
3. Along with seven (7) other students who graduated from Beersheba Primary School (Government Leased) and currently attend Saint Elizabeth Technical High School and Hampton School and for whom Beersheba Old Students Association (BOSA) has also been a safety net, Nickayla was feted at The Annual BOSA Back To School Dinner that was held at Waterloo Guest House, Black River, Saint Elizabeth, Jamaica West Indies where she blew out fourteen (14) candles on her birthday cake that was provided for her at the dinner.
4. Award of a Dell Latitude Laptop Notebook Computer and a Canon PIXMA iP2702 Inject Printer to Nickayla for maintaining her excellent academic performance by coming second in her class of forty-four students.
Photographs and news articles from events mentioned at 3 and 4 above can be viewed and read on BOSA website: http://bosaonline.org
Notwithstanding directive that the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education has given to the School Board at Beersheba Primary School (Government Leased) on March 13, 2013 to pay all outstanding amounts owed to Beersheba Old Students Association (BOSA) and Vincent Samuels by James Richards Educational Trust Fund, the School Board has defied and refused to carry out the directive given by the Permanent Secretary, who is essence is the Chief Accounting Officer in the Ministry of Education. Consequently, the School Board at Beersheba Primary School (Government Leased) has placed Beersheba Old Students Association (BOSA) in a precarious financial position where it is unable to further assist Nickayla Stevens in her plight.
What is going on with the Administration at Beersheba Primary School? Millions of dollars left for the under privileged. Who is benefiting from it? This is a crying shame. James Richards left this Trust Fund to help the poor children that attend Beersheba Primary School to further their education.These heartless individuals, for some reason or another refusing to give the money to the students that are qualified to receive the funds, how can this continue to happen? Calling on all Beersheba Old Students in Jamaica and elsewhere to rise up and take active interest in this matter, write to the Board Members, and anyone who cares to bring attention to this matter,what the Board members are doing is dead wrong. This is very unfair to Nickayla and others and I am sure it is causing great hardship by denying them the opportunity to further their education. Where is the Regional Director in this? ISN’T ANYONE CARE ABOUT THE WELFARE OF THESE POOR STUDENTS? COME ON PEOPLE!!!!! (sh)