16 teachers resign from Campion College Loop Jamaica

Black Immigrant Daily News

The exodus of teachers from Jamaica’s classrooms, most notably for better pay and working conditions overseas, has not spared one of the country’s top schools.

Arguably Jamaica’s most sought-after high school, Campion College was hit with 16 resignations ahead of the new school term, which begins on September 5.

“I had 16 resignations and five people are on leave,” said Grace Baston, principal of Campion College, in response to questions from Loop News.

“Of the 16 resignations, nine went overseas,” Baston added.

She shared that the school has since filled all vacancies except for a lab technician post and that she is in the process of orienting 21 new members of staff.

While the focus of Jamaicans has been on the mass exodus of teachers, primarily to take up posts in the US, not all teachers are migrating.

Principal of Campion College Grace Baston (Photo: YouTube)

Baston shared that she lost four of her teachers to Hillel Academy, an independent school, for better-paying jobs. She said, too, that three of her teachers left to continue their studies overseas without pay.

The Campion College principal also shared that some teachers, having developed a bond with the school and their students, are gutted when they feel they have no choice but to leave.

“I literally had teachers crying in my office as they explained their decision to go overseas,” she told Loop News.

Baston recounted what a young modern languages teacher told her: “Mrs Baston, I love it here and feel that I am being forced to choose between money and happiness.”

There has been a raging public debate over the last two weeks about the number of teachers leaving for overseas jobs and the reasons for the mass exodus, with the Opposition People’s National Party putting forward its proposal to stem teacher migration and the Government responding with its plan to address the fallout.

The Opposition’s proposal to stem mass exodus of teachers from Jamaica’s classrooms.

Inadequate remuneration, poor working conditions and the feeling of being disrespected by the authorities are the top three reasons being cited for educators exiting Jamaican classrooms to take up jobs elsewhere.

Reports are that up to seven agencies are in the country actively recruiting teachers to work overseas. The Ministry of Education had projected that up to 1,250 teachers could leave the classroom this year. Earlier this week, Minister of Education and Youth, Fayval Williams, said 167 teachers had resigned since July.

For its part, the 25,000-strong Jamaica Teachers’ Association (JTA) said the sector will be short 600 teachers when the new school year starts in just over a week.

The JTA said a survey of 140 schools found that 13 per cent of teachers who are not returning to the classroom have retired while 43 per cent have resigned and 44 per cent are on approved leave.

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