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THE parents of four students were on Thursday beaming with pride after their children were awarded full-ride scholarships by Petrojam for copping the top girl and top boy spots at St Andrew Primary School and Greenwich All-Age School in the 2026 Primary Exit Profile (PEP) exam.
Welcoming the scholarship valued at $60,00 per year for five years, Janelle East, mother of Neymar Price — who was named the top boy at St Andrew Primary — told the Jamaica Observer that her son’s acceptance to Excelsior High School and his selection for the award was not surprising.
“I am very, happy; words can’t even express how I feel, knowing where he’s coming from. I knew from the beginning that he had it in him. From basic school coming up, he was always the one topping the class. From class one to class three, he has always been the top boy, and then he went to St Andrew Primary School and he carried on that from grade one to grade six. I couldn’t expect anything less,” said East following the awards ceremony held at the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica (PCJ) auditorium in New Kingston.
“I appreciate what Petrojam has been doing and what they will continue to do. This scholarship, will help my son in such a good way,” an emotional East added, citing financial burdens that often times worsens with her being Neymar’s sole provider.
These sentiments were shared by Gregory Gordon, father of the top girl at St Andrew Primary Joe-Lee Gordon.
He told the Observer that when he received news about his daughter’s performance in PEP he could not contain his emotions.
“I was at work when her teacher called me and told me she passed for Excelsior High. I was so happy that I had to stop working. Words can’t express how I feel. And she being the top girl, the highest achiever at her school in PEP,” said a beaming Gordon.
“I think it’s something good that Petrojam is doing, it is a good initiative. I just want to say give thanks to them and what they have been doing over the years,” added Gordon.
For Tashauna Swaby, mother of Denesha Watson who was named the top girl at Greenwich All-Age, her daughter’s success was grounded in sacrifice.
“I feel so proud to know a single mother like me that tries so hard in the streets, just to let her go to school and put food on her table. Thanks to Petrojam if it wasn’t for them, I don’t know how I would manage,” said Swaby, who smiled as she pointed out that her daughter has been placed at the highly regarded Merl Grove High School.
“The day that I heard that she passed for the school, I was so shocked, because she didn’t tell me it was Merl Grove, she told me it was STATHS, (St Andrew Technical High School) and I said, ‘Okay, no problem, I’m proud just the same’. And she said, ‘No, Mommy, it’s Merl Grove”. I was so happy,” said Swaby.
In the meantime, Shari-Gay Cowan, mother of the top boy at Greenwich All-Age Kenzo Riley, told the Observer that preparations leading up to the exams were challenging.
“It was very hard with him because he’s a child when I tell him about books, he wants to sleep, but when the time comes and he has to study he goes to study. I have to call him every minute, ‘Kenz, come and take up a book, Kenz, come do this, Kenz, come do that. Kenz, remember it’s PEP time, you need to focus now’, and so on. So, it was really a rough journey with him, but I’m glad when I heard that he’s a top boy for the school,” said Cowan as she shared that her son’s father is deceased.
“I just want to thank Petrojam for this programme that is going on. I’m a single mother, so it’s just me and him alone on the road. So, it means a lot to me. A lot of burden has been lifted off my shoulder with him, so I’m grateful for it, especially when you speak about the homework programme, because for me, it is very hard with him to say do your homework and so on, because sometimes I got frustrated, and so I’m here about the homework programme,” added Cowan.
Since 2006 the the State-owned oil refinery’s annual scholarship programme has been the cornerstone of its corporate social responsibility mandate which recognises education as key to its community development focus. Initially the programme, which was restricted to Greenwich All-Age, which is in the vicinity of the refinery. It was expanded to St Andrew Primary in 2014.
In his address to the awards ceremony, manager of human resource development and administration at Petrojam Colin Barnett underscored that the initiative extends beyond an award.
“So one of the most important things to understand from this is, [is that] this is not a one-off situation where we sit here, we celebrate, and then next year we come back. This is a programme. It goes through the entire year. And what we’re talking about is support to the students, not just those who are being awarded today, but remember, we have 10 students from each school right now at the secondary level, going through from grade seven onwards.
“And during the year, we would have a homework centre that we provide transportation to. We have a tutor and beyond that we have a mentorship programme that exists for the students,” Barnett explained.
