The Caribbean Union hosted its annual Secondary Schools Talent Parade on March 11 at the University of the Southern Caribbean, nestled in the lush Maracas Valley, Trinidad. Fourteen excited students representing eight fields converged at the University for the Much Anticipated Event. The competition comprised of three segments – a 10-minute prepared speech segment, a talent segment and an impromptu speech segment.
The moot for the prepared speech was: Fake News or Real Information – Can the Media be Trusted? It was evident that all participants researched the topic well, as they discussed the topic intelligently and provided compelling supporting facts.
The talent segment showcased a potpourri of talents as students played the piano, played the steel pan, sang, and did an array of dramatic presentations before an appreciative audience.
The impromptu segment was the most challenging segment as students were required to speak for three minutes on randomly selected topics. This tested the metal of the students as they were challenged to think on their feet and speak intelligently on a given topic. Mrs Jessica Cunningham, Associate Education Director of the Caribbean Union noted, “Students showed marked improvement in this segment when compared to previous years. We highly commend our students for their outstanding performance as well as their teachers for preparing them adequately.”
At the end of the contest, Andre Benjamin of the St Thomas/St John SDA School, was awarded first place in the Prepared Speech and Talent Segments. Ultimately, he was awarded overall winner in the Talent Parade. Kajani Reynolds represented the St Croix SDA School while Lia Claxton represented the BVI SDA School in the Talent Parade.
An ecstatic Education Director, Mrs Gerene Joseph, remarked, “I am overjoyed at the remarkable performance of our students from the NCC. They have made their schools, the conference, and their families proud. Special congratulations to Andre Benjamin for his incredible performance and for emerging winner.” Mrs Joseph further noted, “Andre’s achievement comes on the heels of the St Maarten SDA Primary School placing first in the Choir Segment and third in the Solo Segment of that country’s Music Festival. In addition, Mahlana Graham of the St Croix SDA School and Angelica Sterling of the St Thomas/St John SDA emerged first and third place respectively in the US Virgin Islands Recitation Contest. I am overjoyed at the phenomenal performance of our schools and pray God’s continue blessings on the staff and students of all our educational institutions.”
The North Caribbean Conference education system comprises of five primary schools, three secondary schools and three pre-schools.