An exceptional servant of education and sports… Lancelot Baptiste is a ‘Special Person’

Jun 22, 2014 News

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“I can boast that I came right through from Pupil teacher to Headmaster, and [in the] GTU from member right up to the Presidency. I love representing teachers and I still do, up to this day.”

By Leon Suseran
If there was a ‘Very Special Person’ Column, then Lancelot Arthur Godfrey Baptiste would have been among those on the list

of featured persons. His contributions to this country are innumerable. His work as an educator is invaluable. His labours for the Guyana Teachers’ Union are extraordinary, and his contributions to sports in Guyana have been exceptional.
He was born to Florence, a housewife, and Clarence Baptiste, a stevedore in Georgetown. His father, he remembers, was “terribly interested in education,” ensuring in those days he attended a secondary school, despite the fact it was costly in those days; only for the rich as they say. He attended Queenstown Roman Catholic School and later the Christ Church Anglican School. He recalled that one would not able to be admitted to those schools if one were not Catholic or Anglican. His mother, a Catholic and later on, his father, an Anglican, and “faith played a part in that.”
After those schools, he attended Cambridge Academy High in 1957, a school which he believed that catered a great lot for the poorer people. He lauded the academic as well as moral teaching he received there. In January 1961, the young Lancelot, who was an altar boy, was encouraged by the priest at Church of the Transfiguration to get into teaching, “a profession that I had never liked.”
He wanted to become a pharmacist, “and later on to get up higher into the medical field…but in those days when your priest instructed you, you never disobeyed.”
Lancelot started to teach at the tender age of 17—earning $60 per month— at the St. Ambrose Primary School on January 5, 1961. One of the last things his mother told him before she kissed him goodbye was, “do not trouble the people’s girl children…because in those days if you trouble the girl children, you have to marry them,” he laughed.
He vividly recalled the Headmaster of the school, Mr. Isaac Theophilus putting him to work

with a teacher in the Prep Division, “and now imagine I just left high school and being put to deal with children who had slates and slate pencils to write on.” It was quite an interesting experience, as he remembered putting huge stars on their slates, which brought delight and smiles to their tiny faces. He later taught the kids at Standard Six and later the Junior Common Entrance Class or Scholarship Classes.
Baptiste recalled some more fond memories of the St. Ambrose School with its 800-children plus. A large portion of his memorable years in teaching was spent there, “because we used to call that school a ‘family school’ and every teacher looked out for the other teacher and was always helping you to teach and pass other exams.”
He even found the love of his life on that staff, Jean Peters, “and we fell in love almost immediately”. They got married on May 1, 1965. He also enrolled at the Teachers’ Training College in 1969 and graduated in 1971 in the In- Service Teachers’ Training Programme (ITTP).
Baptiste quickly climbed the rungs of the education ladder, leaving that school as Deputy Headmaster in 1986 after which he was promoted to St. Paul’s Primary in Plaisance as Headmaster. In 1989, he was once more promoted to Headmaster at St. Pius Primary.
“In all my years of headmastership, I enjoyed those 2- plus years—the orientation there helped me a great deal and gave me an opportunity to perform.” Attaining the age of retirement in 1998, Baptiste called it a day at the school. During that period of teaching, he made many successes for children, “because I became what was known as the Common Entrance teacher of St. Ambrose.” They were very fruitful years as he touched many lives and students, many of whom he knows are in very high positions today.
But Mr. Baptiste was not only in education then; he was actively involved in sports. While in secondary school, he played cricket, football and table-tennis. He carried over those skills to St. Ambrose and was made Sports Organizer for cricket, football and track-and-field, “and St. Ambrose School became the champion school for cricket and football for many, many years.”

Then the Georgetown Branch Officers of the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU) saw the talented young man and they surely needed one like him in their union.  So from the 1960s, he became actively involved in the GTU. He then became District Sports Representative, followed by National Sports Secretary in 1977 and National Sports Chairman in 1980. In those days, GTU controlled all junior sports in Guyana, he recalled, “and that I did from 1980 to 1995, and I only gave it up in 1995 because I was made General Secretary of GTU in 1994.”
He held other notable positions throughout those years in GTU, such as Branch Secretary, Branch Chairman (Georgetown), General Council Representative (G/T), and a member of the Executive Council…”going right through the ranks.” And he was also Regional Vice-President for Demerara in the 1980’s, “a position I had really loved because I became acquainted with more teachers, serving them in Regions 3, 4 and 10—very, very large areas!”
In 1998, Baptiste assumed the Presidency of the GTU. There he was, this young teacher who began at St. Ambrose School in his teenage years, fresh out of high school and many years later, he was the main man representing all teachers in Guyana.
“I can boast that I came right through from Pupil teacher to Headmaster, and [in the] GTU from member right up to the Presidency.”
He also became the Senior Vice-President for the Georgetown Football Association (GFA); an Executive Member of the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) as well as Senior Vice-President of the Guyana Olympic Association (GOA) under the Presidency of Sir Lionel Luckhoo.
It’s not finished there. Baptiste was a member of the National Sports Development Council (NSDC). In the trade union world, besides serving in the GTU, he served at the national level as Vice-President for Education in the Guyana Trades Union Congress (GTUC) and even acted as President of GTUC for a short period.

Internationally, he was an Executive Member of the Caribbean Union of Teachers (CUT) and later on, became a Trustee of CUT.
“I love representing teachers and I still do, up to this day.”
Baptiste’s work with the GTU did not end after he retired as President, rather, he continued as Immediate Past President until a President was elected. During that time, the union decided they needed more of his services, thus creating a position of Administrative Officer and Field Secretary in 1998, a position he holds to this day.
“I have loved all those years that I was able to give service and have had lots of opportunities to go overseas.” Baptiste lost the opportunity at attaining American residency since he did not visit that country often enough, “and stayed away so long that the period of amnesty allowed to you in that time elapsed.” He preferred to serve in Guyana, since back then he was sure that he was making meaningful contributions here.
He is looking forward to the days when things can improve in Guyana, “but what I find happening in Guyana is that quite a few persons who are skilled are leaving us too early, and putting a strain on those left behind to carry on.”
It should be noted that Mr. Baptiste is the GTU’s ‘point-man’ and representative when it comes to teachers facing the Disciplinary Committee of the Teaching Service Commission (TSC). When they are interdicted on charges, Baptiste would take on their cases, study them, and accompany the teachers to the Hearings at TSC. He does this on a daily basis. In his younger teaching years, he recalled, studying in depth the Teachers’ Code, “and from since then I started to read that book…and I started to get closer to assisting teachers.”
“I must say that at times the reception that I would get from teachers and TSC Commissioners and Board Representatives is very good—they look at my suggestions and recommendations.” This job would also entail Baptiste traveling across the country, addressing groups of teachers in the various regions, educating them about their rights and responsibilities, “trying to prevent them from getting into the folly of being placed before the TSC…and in most cases it bears fruit, but the situation these days when the children are more indisciplined than what it was like before…”
Rather than having a Rights of the Child Commission (ROC), he believes that Guyana needs a Rights and Responsibilities of the Child Commission.
“The children read ROC to believe that they have all the rights …they are not being told about their responsibilities.”
Baptiste has enjoyed his years, “and strange enough I have been telling groups…if I were to have another opportunity, I would still go into teaching, because it has helped me help so many people, so many children!”

Our ‘Special Person’ also had some words of encouragement for his fellow educators.
“I want to tell teachers, as I have often said, if you do not like teaching—I wouldn’t say not to become a teacher, but it becomes difficult to administer to your children if you don’t like teaching and you continue not to like teaching.
“If teachers continue this way, they would not be able to give benefits to the children of Guyana. Like all professions, they have the good and bad, but I have been able to identify quite a large amount of teachers who are giving of their best, but they need a lot of support from the community, from the education departments, and from the government.”
Our ‘Special Person’ enjoys watching action at the Georgetown Football Club, Demerara Cricket Club and Everest Cricket Ground, “especially at weekends…and I am a lover of basketball.”
Baptiste is the father of four loving sons – Lancelot Anthony, Laurie Amega, Lee Andrew, and Lester Adwin. He and his wife will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary in 2015. His five grandchildren have also been given the initials ‘L.A.’ After all, his is the same.
He was honoured on numerous occasions, among them for outstanding service to CUT and the

Bermuda Union of Teachers in 2013; GTU presented him with a plaque for long and dedicated service and contributions in 1999; and Guyana Cricket Board recognized him for outstanding and dedicated service to the development of cricket in Guyana in 2007.
Baptiste represented his country further afield at the CARIFTA Games in Barbados; managed teams in Curacao; and at Inter-Guiana Games in Cayenne and Paramaribo. Some of his mentors and role models through the years include Dhanpaul Tiwari, Charles Carter, Leslie James, George Cave, Jean Persico, Reds Perreira, Sir Lionel Luckhoo and Ed Hartley.
For all the contributions to the development of education, trade unionism and sports in Guyana, Mr. Lancelot Baptiste certainly deserves to be honoured as one of our ‘Special Persons.’

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