Last Updated on February 19, 2023, 4:52 AM AST by Anthony Morris
The Ministry of Education of St Kitts and Nevis has extended the period of compassionate care for the staff, students and parents associated with the Irishtown Primary School. The school has remained closed since the incident on Tuesday, February 14, till further notice. Now, the Ministry of education has shared other updates on the situation.
Accordingly, Dr Geoffrey Hanley, the minister of education, has taken to his social media on Saturday, February 18, 2023, to inform the people that the school has extended their compassionate care period. As per the update, the school will remain closed from Monday, February 20, to February 24. During the said period, the Ministry of education has committed to reaching out to the staff, students and others.
The Ministry has also declared that the department will make guidance counselling services available to the people before the schools reopen for normal teaching.
The school witnessed a violent crime on their premises on Valentine’s Day, February 14, 2023. Security personnel of the school was murdered after school hours at 4:30 PM. St Kitts and Nevis are facing increased violence and crime incidents in the federation. The upward surge in crime incidents comes at the start of the new year.
As per reports, the federation has not seen such a surge in crime incidents for years. Accordingly, the school has remained closed for the Ministry to provide compassionate care. In the meantime, the Ministry of Education, headed by Dr Geoffrey Hanley, has met with several top-level education and counselling officials to address the issue of security in the schools.
Additionally, the Ministry also hosted a healing initiative for the benefit of the staff and students. The guidance counsellor working with the Ministry also interacted with the team at Irishtown Primary. The industry included several events like prayer and songs to show the Ministry of Education’s support following the tragic incident.
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
