Naparima College
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Naparima College is a prestigious secondary school for boys in Trinidad and Tobago. Located in San Fernando, the school was founded in 1894 but did not receive official recognition until 1900. The was established by Dr. Kenneth J. Grant, a Canadian Presbyterian missionary working among the Indian population in Trinidad. The school was one of the first to educate Indo-Trinidadians and played an important role in the development of an Indo-Trinidadian professional class.
The school was founded in the churchyard of Susamachar Presbyterian Church in San Fernando as the Canadian Mission Indian School. In 1899 the Mission Council petitioned the Board of Queen's Royal College in Port of Spain for affiliation with it. In 1900 the school became a recognised secondary school and was thus eligible for state aid. It was then renamed Naparima College. In 1917 it relocated to its present campus at Paradise Hill on what was then the southern edge of the town of San Fernando.
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[edit] Motto
A Posse ad Esse (From possibility to actuality)
[edit] College Hymn
Our Alma Mater dear
The school we all revere
Make us worthy
Help us ever to be
All that we ought to be
And always proud of thee
Naparima
To thee the best we owe
With which we may endow
Our island home
No matter where we roam
If near or far from home
Let us be always one
Naparima
[edit] Mission Statement
Born from the faith of our founding fathers,
we at Naparima College hold to the conviction
that each human being is of infinite worth and
must be given the opportunity for self-actualization.
We foster in our students a love of learning
and nurture a tradition of excellence in all
aspects of school life, in an environment that is
spiritually enriched and caring.
We encourage all to rise to places of honour,
to aspire to responsible leadership and to be of
service to humanity.
[edit] Principals of Naparima College
- Rev. Dr. Kenneth. J. Grant 1894-1900
- Rev. Alison Cumming 1900-03
- Rev. Dr. F. J. Coffin 1904-09
- Rev. Dr. J. A. Scrimgeour 1909-12
- Rev. Dr. H. F. Kemp 1913-15
- Rev. Dr. J. C. Macdonald 1915-17
- Rev. W. A. Hunter 1917-23
- Rev. Dr. Victor B. Walls 1924-53
- Rev. Edward T. Lute 1953-61
- Rev. Dr. James F. Sieunarine 1962-66
- Dr. Allan I. MacKenzie 1966-95
- Mr. Edison J. Sookoo 1996-02
- Ms. Maureen Atwal 2002-2005
- Mr. Michael Dowlath 2006
[edit] School Houses
The House System, which was instituted in 1959 by then-principal, Rev. Lute, consists of four houses:
- Flemington House (Gold), named for Allen Flemington, who served as a missionary and teacher at the school from 1939-1940. He left the school to volunteer for service in World War II, where he died in combat.
- Grant House (Green), named for the founder of Naparima College, Kenneth J. Grant.
- Sammy House (Blue), named for James Sammy, who taught at Naparima College from 1912-1968.
- Walls House (Red), named for long-serving principal, Victor B. Walls,
[edit] Prominent alumni
Prominent alumni include
- Mervyn M. Dymally (California State Assemblyman, former U.S. Congressman and former Lieutenant Governor of California)
- Noor Hassanali, former President of Trinidad and Tobago.
- Sir Isaac Hyatali, former Chief Justice of Trinidad and Tobago.
- Sir Trevor McDonald, broadcaster.
- Dr. Kenneth Ramchand, Professor Emeritus of English at the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine and Independent Senator (Senate of Trinidad and Tobago.
- Dr. Jean Ramjohn-Richards, First Lady of Trinidad and Tobago.
- Ralph Maraj, Trinidad and Tobago politician (former Government minister) and playwright
- Dr. Lall Sawh, urologist.
- Samuel Selvon, author.
- Rikki Jai, Trinidadian chutney-soca artiste
- Daren Ganga, West Indies cricketer
- Barendra J. Sinanan, Speaker of the House of Representatives of Trinidad & Tobago
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- Anthony, Michael (2001). Historical Dictionary of Trinidad and Tobago. Scarecrow Press, Inc. Lanham, Md., and London. ISBN 0-8108-3173-2.
