CedarBridge Males Excel In 2010/11

CedarBridge Academy’s male students excelled in academics, athletics and the performing arts in the 2010/11 school year according to principal Kalmar Richards, who said their accomplishments put the anti-social behaviour of a minority of disgruntled Bermuda youth into the proper perspective.

In a report on the achievements of CedarBridge boys in the last 12 months, Mrs. Richards said when it came to everything from university placement to achievements on the sports field to acting,  the visual arts and singing this had been an outstanding year for male students at the senior secondary school.

“These highlights are not being shared just for the sake of lifting up males, not at the expense of the female students at CedarBridge Academy who continue to shine and demonstrate excellence, but because the males at CedarBridge Academy have dominated in the academics, athletics and the arts during 2010 – 2011 and they have earned the right to be held up, applauded and recognised,” she said.

“I also salute the males at CedarBridge Academy because they have chosen not to wear the label that so many in the public and community erroneously place on teenage males, but because they have chosen to live up to the mission of CedarBridge Academy which calls them to be young men of excellence.”

Mrs. Richards’ Remarks Appear In Full Below:

Highlights of the Achievements of CBA Male Students for 2010 – 2011

It is with a great sense of pride that I share with you the achievements of the CedarBridge Academy male students for the 2010 – 2011 school year.

These highlights are not being shared just for the sake of lifting up males, not at the expense of the female students at CedarBridge Academy who continue to shine and demonstrate excellence, but because the males at CedarBridge Academy have dominated in the academics, athletics and the arts during 2010 – 2011 and they have earned the right to be held up, applauded and recognised.

I also salute the males at CedarBridge Academy because they have chosen not to wear the label that so many in the public and community erroneously place on teenage males, but because they have chosen to live up to the mission of CedarBridge Academy which calls them to be young men of excellence.

Academics Highlights

The valedictorian (Andrew Fleming) and Salutorian (Israel Sanchez) earned the top two academic spots for the Class of 2011. Andrew, former head boy, made history by graduating with a GPA of 3.98 and he earned the 2011 Robert Clements/Ace Scholarship and was selected out of 51 candidates for the award. He relentlessly pursued excellence and maintained Principals Honours for all four years. Also, Andrew was exempted from taking freshman English at Mount Saint Vincent University this fall because he scored a “4” on the Advanced Placement English test. Andrew is pursuing a degree in economics.

The Salutorian, Israel Sanchez, graduated in the second spot. He earned a GPA of 3.95. While in S4 at CedarBridge Academy, Israel took the Bermuda College Placement test and had a perfect score for the math section. Further, Israel tested out of freshmen math and was placed at the next level of math for which he earned an “A”.

He has participated in the Centre for Talented Youth Programme at Johns Hopkins taking courses such as Fundamentals of Programming, Mathematical Modeling and Engineering Design. Israel has also taken courses in Cryptology, algebra, physics and calculus. Israel is presently in his first year at McGill University where he is pursuing a degree in engineering.

We had more males graduate with honours for the Class of 2011 than females.

We had more males than females who graduated as National Honours students and who remained as members in good standing for the National Honours Society from the induction ceremony in 2008 to the graduation ceremony in 2011.

Aaron Daniel, Jamieko Smith, Andrew Fleming and Bryson Doers were selected as Catlin Mentees at the start of their S3 year and they maintained the criteria to remain in the programme until they graduated. This programme selects top male students, for the duration of their S3 and S4 year, providing they continue to meet the academic criteria of 3.0 and higher. Bryson Doers, graduated in June 2011 with Honours and he is presently in Thailand as a Rotary exchange student; he will pursue a degree in law once he completes the programme. Jahmeiko Smith, who has experience drawing real “blueprints”, is pursuing a degree in architecture.

Zhane Burges-Dears who graduated with the Class of 2011 also worked as a veterinary nurse who medicates, bathes and dresses the wounds of various domestic animals. Zhane also observes the surgeries.

Each year CedarBridge Academy students and staff wait to see who will be the first student accepted into university for that particular year group. Ricardo Diaz, a S4 male student, was the first student accepted in October 2010 for the Class of 2011. This year, the first student accepted is also a male, Phillip Burgess [Class of 2012], who received his acceptance letter to Barry University on October 25, 2011. The second student accepted for the Class of 2012, is also a male, Chiamo Knight, our current Head Boy, who has also been accepted to Barry University.

• Andrew Fleming and Israel Sanchez wrote essays for the Business Bermuda Essay Competition. Both males earned an “Honorable Mention” and had the privilege of having breakfast with the premier.
• Jaret Simmons won the Intellectual Property Essay Competition in May 2011. Additionally, Jaret won the Tom Pettit Thanksgiving Essay Competition in November 2011. He is a S3 student and he will graduate at the end of S3 after completing an accelerated programme at CedarBridge Academy. Jaret is pursuing a career as an aeronautical engineer.
•  CedarBridge Academy had five students place in the top ten places for the annual Math Olympiad 2011 hosted by the Centre for Talented Youth (CTY). Four of the five were male students and Israel Sanchez placed 1st for the S4 level.
•  Four CedarBridge Academy students earned notable placements in the Earth Hours Competition held in March 2011. Two were males: Jair Duke (S1) placed 2nd and Kamel Easton (S2) placed 3rd.
• Two CedarBridge Academy students participated in the Pan American Debates in California last year. One student is a S2 male named Marcus H. Bean. Marcus was also the top debater for Bermuda’s Great Debate competition. This year Marcus was a member of one of CedarBridge Academy’s debate teams which placed second for the Annual Debate Completion held in November 2011. He was awarded a second place for individual debating and he has been selected to be a part of the Bermuda Debate Team that will be travelling to South Africa to debate in January 2012.
• The GCSE results for 2011 are our best results to date. CedarBridge Academy male students played their part in producing these results. Two male students earned “A” grades for GCSE Art – Jahday Forde and Jameiko Smith. The top grade for GCSE PE, a “B”, was earned by a male student, Malah Saunders. The highest grade for GCSE Spanish, an “A” was earned by a male student, Andrew Fleming.
•  For the Math GCSE we had twice as many male students as female students earn grades of “C” and higher. Further, for the Math GCSE, we had more males than females earning “B” grades; and Jesekani Furbert-Wade, a S2 male, earned an “A”, the top grade.
• More males than females earned grades “C” and higher for the IGCSE English. Further, more males earned “A” grades than females for this examination and the highest possible grade of A Star was earned by two males. Students earning “A” grades are Dajon Richardson, Jaret Simmons, Jibri Lawrence-Salaam and Ricai Burrows. Students earning A Star grades are Daniel Walker and Breon Neverson.

Athletics and the Visual/Performing Arts:

• The boys’ softball team placed 3rd.
• The cross country team placed 3rd.
•  The boys’ volleyball team placed 2nd.
•  The Under 16 male basketball team placed 2nd.
• The Over 16 male basketball team placed 2nd.
•  The Under 16 male football team placed 1st.
• The Over 16 male football team placed 1st.
•  Our Under 16 male soccer team played in the Dallas Cup finals in Texas in April 2011 [ What is significant with this team is that the majority of males are academic merit or honours students.]
• The level of skill that was demonstrated by some of the male students on the Under 16 Team resulted in four male students being recruited to play soccer for overseas school for September 2011.
• CedarBridge Academy had nine students qualify for the Carifta Games 2011. Seven (7) out of the nine (9) were males: Bruce Degrilla, Jaquan Callabras, Jaquan Hatherly, Kidane Callendar, Jaret Simmons, Jeneko Lottimore-Place and Kyle Godfrey. Male student, Bruce DeGrilla won a silver medal.
• Students Ricco Wells and Tarreko Wilson made their debut as sports commentators in April 2011 and they were interviewed by BERNEWS. Ricco graduated from CedarBridge Academy in June 2011 and he is presently studying in the UK. In November 2011 Ricco was asked to train with Hull City Football Club, following in the footsteps of his older brother, Nahki Wells who is also a CedarBridge Academy graduate.
• The CedarBridge Academy String Ensemble made their international debut on April 4, 2011, on the Waterside Stage at Downtown Disney in Orlando. CedarBridge Academy male students held their own as part of the ensemble.
• Khaivon Castro [S3] and Naasson Swan [S3] are outstanding actors and gave superb performances as lead actors for the “Taming of the Shrew” at the Bermuda Shakespeare Festival 2010 and in the annual Christmas Production 2011.
• Khalid Muhammad is an exceptional and phenomenal artist. His art work was used for the backdrop for the new show “Songopoly” which is featured on a local television station.

One of the best things that we can do for males is to hold them to high expectations and I have found not only do they meet those expectations, they often exceed them.

Mrs. K. Richards
Principal

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