Black River High School (Black River, Jamaica)
Black River High School is a high school located in Black River, Jamaica. Population 17544
| Black River High School | |
|---|---|
| Address | |
| |
80 High Street | |
| Coordinates | 18.031954°N 77.859986°W |
| Information | |
| Motto | 'We Create Our Own Destiny' |
| Founded | 1970 |
| School district | Ministry of Education Region V [1] |
| Principal | Mr. C Romans |
| Grades | 7 - 13 |
| Gender | Co-educational |
| Age | 10 to 19 |
| Hours in school day | 07:00 - 12:00, 12:00 - 5:00 |
| Campus size | 16 acres (6.5 ha) |
| Website | https://www.facebook.com/TheOfficialBlackRiverHighAlumni |
History
The Black River High School is situated about half a mile from the town. The Anglican Church in Black River acquired 12 acres of land through loans and grants, also the Francis' family gave 4 acres as a gift making a total of 16 acres on which the Government built the Black River High School.
The Junior Secondary school was opened in September 1970 to house 655 students on a straight shift from grades 7-9; Mr. E A Harris was appointed as Principal and his wife Mrs. B. J Harris as Vice-Principal.
In 1974 the school was put on a two shift system since grades 10 and 11 were added. The word "Junior" was dropped from the title.
By 1984, Mr. J Scott was appointed Principal and the school upgraded to Black River High in September 1988. By 1990 Mr. R Gayle became the Acting Principal. The first set of common entrance awardees sat the Caribbean Examination Council (CXC) examinations in 1993 and the results were quite outstanding and were on par with the traditional high schools.
The fourth Principal Rev. B Buchanan became active in May 1994. By 1995 the school went on a straight shift for a year; however by 1996 it went back to two shifts.
In September 1998, Mr. J Beckford introduced the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE). The subjects initially offered were Caribbean Studies, History, Mathematics and Statistics and students did outstanding in these subjects. Today the subjects offered have increased to include the Sciences (Chemistry, Biology, Physics and Environmental Science), Sociology, Literature in English and Management of Business, Pure Mathematics, Add Mathematics, Law and Economics among others.
The School offers a range of extra curricular activities and have been excelling over the past couple years. In 2009, they were winners of the TVJ's Altogether sing competition for High school choirs in Jamaica after entering for the first time. They have received numerous gold, silver and bronze medals for participating in the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) competition on a yearly basis. In recent years they have dominated the Theater Arts areas and have sent students overseas to represent Jamaica in competitions. The School has various clubs and societies that students can participate in and become active. Some of these are: The Quiz club, Performing arts society, the Science, Mathematics and Spanish, debating club among others.