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Dilapidated infrastructure, bat infestation plaguing DC Caesar Fox Secondary School, dorms
(Kaieteur News) – While many students returned to renovated classrooms and school buildings when schools reopened on August 31, this was not the case for students and staff of the DC Caesar Fox Secondary School and its dormitories in Waramadong Village, Upper Mazaruni, Region Seven.
Students and teachers were met with dilapidated classrooms and leaking, bat-infested living accommodations, conditions described as hazardous.
The troubling state of the school and dormitories was highlighted by prominent Amerindian rights activist Laura George, who shared photographs of the deteriorating facilities on her Facebook page.
The DC Caesar Fox Secondary School. (Photo credit: Chris Elliman/ Facebook)
The DC Caesar Fox Secondary School. (Photo credit: Chris Elliman/ Facebook)
In her post, George wrote: “The DC Caesar Fox Secondary School, formerly Waramadong Secondary School, opens its doors and classrooms to hazardous conditions, putting Guyanese Indigenous children and, of course, staff at risk. This must be the last year that our children endure such a condition. Our children may come from humble homes, but that does not mean our children must leave the love and comfort of their homes to be in this situation.”
Kaieteur News has also seen photographs shared online by other concerned residents showing the conditions of the school and its dormitories.
On Monday, Toshao of Waramadong, Amrita Thomas, confirmed to Kaieteur News that the images circulating online accurately reflect the current state of the school buildings.
The current condition of the DC Caesar Fox Secondary School and dormitories in Waramadong Village. (Photo courtesy, Laura George)
Thomas said the DC Caesar Fox Secondary School has been in existence for approximately 25 years and is housed in an aging structure that currently accommodates more than 500 students.
As the only secondary school in Upper Mazaruni, the institution caters for students from several surrounding communities, including Kaikan, Arau, Paruima, Kamarang, Kako, Jawalla, Phillipai, Wax Creek, Imbaimadia and Chinoweing.
“According to the reports I get, the headteachers of the secondary, primary and nursery have been sending reports to the Regional Education Department complaining about the condition of the schools every month. In fact, they report, but nothing has been done,” Thomas said.
She explained that concerns about the condition of the school and dormitories had been raised with regional officials and the central government by parents and village leaders even before she became Toshao.
“Since I took over as a Toshao for almost three years now, the last time in 2025 I brought it to the NTC (National Toshaos Council) conference meeting, and this last time, this year in July, I mentioned it again,” she said.
Thomas said about three weeks before the reopening of schools, contractors arrived in the village to carry out a “major rehabilitation.”
However, she said regional and central ministry officials only visited the village about a week before the August 31 reopening.
“Just a week before the school opened, the team went in from central and then from the region, and then we shared the same complaint again to them. I asked them why, at the last moment, this thing should have been done already. Repairs should have been done when school closed, but a week before they come and they expect to do whatever,” she said.
“We have been crying out for this, and the condition has remained the same,” Thomas added, describing the situation as “a setback for our children.”
According to the Toshao, because the school and dormitories remain in dire need of upgrades, students from communities outside Waramadong only began returning to school this week.
She said when school reopened last Monday, only children from Waramadong attended classes.
Meanwhile, some upper-secondary students from surrounding villages are being forced to remain in their communities and attend primary-top classes because of the condition and limited space in the male and female dormitories.
“Because of accommodation, they are only accepting Grade Seven at DC Caesar Fox. Parents are begging. They said they would purchase their own mattresses for their children, but it’s the space really,” Thomas said.
The Toshao is appealing to the education minister and her team to urgently address the situation.
On behalf of the Waramadong community, Thomas is also calling for the construction of a new secondary school and dormitory facilities to properly accommodate students from across the Upper Mazaruni.
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And, they call this a High School ?
For our Amerindian children ?