Aftermath of flea infestation….Queen’s College students transferred to Richard Ishmael Secondary

Nov 27, 2012 News

Anxious parents gathered yesterday for a meeting at the Richard Ishmael Secondary School where they were told by Chief Education Officer, Olato Sam that alternative arrangements for classes for Queen’s College students will commence today within a new time frame.
Students and teachers of Richard Ishmael Secondary will attend school from 07:30h to 12:15h beginning today. The students and teachers of Queen’s College will then use Richard Ishmael Secondary from 12:30h to 16:30h. This arrangement will continue for the remainder of this week.

Chief Education Officer, Olato Sam, addressing parents at yesterday’s meeting at Richard Ishmael Secondary.

According to the Chief Education Officer, the Ministry of Education continues to monitor the flea infestation at Queen’s College. Rentokil is spraying the building for the third time since last week.
In an effort to reduce the loss of school hours, he said the Ministry of Education has put arrangements in place for the students and teachers of Queen’s College to share the use of Richard Ishmael Secondary School.
At the meeting parents expressed their frustration pertaining to the new schedule and the clashing of students from both schools. However, the Chief Education Officer said that officers from the Education Ministry will be present on the ground to assist with a seamless transition for today.
Noting that Richard Ishmael Secondary can adequately house students from Queen’s College, he said students were already robbed of a week of classes and Richard Ishmael Secondary is a temporary solution.
He underscored that the flea infestation was a result of a combination of flea-infested dogs and cats being inside the school, thus spreading the fleas to the attic of the school where there is a large compilation of documents which was the breeding ground for the invasion.
“Rentokil is being managed and supervised by the Ministry of Agriculture and is actively engaged in the process of cleaning the school. We can’t dictate how fast they work, and we are relying on expert advice for the best results,” the Chief Education Officer noted.
Complaints about lack of communication toward parents and students were also raised, since many felt there was not enough communication to those affected.
“Imagine when I turned up at Queen’s College this (yesterday) morning, then I knew along with many others that there was no school. This is unacceptable,” one frustrated parent noted.
All parents collectively agreed that safety was the main issue for students and teachers at the school, and thus they hoped that after the ordeal is over there would not be any other issues pertaining to health hazards at the college.