Found at: http://www.anguillaguide.com/article/articleprint/5251/-1/140/
|
Former ALHCS Principal Cautions Of Development Pace
|
One of the most respected Principals of the Albena Lake-Hodge Comprehensive School in Anguilla in the 1990s, Merritt Lake, was back on the island this week on another in a frequent series of family-reunion visits.
|
|
Former ALHCS Principal, Mr. Merritt Lake at JRWP, watching cricket game, Nevis vs Anguilla
|
It is his third trip home from Hartfordshire, England, for the year so far and he plans to come again for Christmas. In that County he serves as a Local Councillor for a Ward representing the Labour Government.
The retired educator has a long history of teaching in the United Kingdom and working otherwise in the area of education for African/Caribbean young people, parents and others. He is called on at times to serve on a panel to interview persons applying for employment as teachers. He served as Headmaster of Fladebrook High School just outside London.
On retirement he accepted an appointment as Principal of the Albena Lake-Hodge Comprehensive School in Anguilla in 1991, for three years. “I thought that was a fantastic challenge,” he remarked. “That was for me the icing on the cake because I had just retired as headmaster of a school in London. It was nice to be asked to come home to take on an extremely challenging job which I enjoyed, and coming back there as Principal of the Albena Lake Hodge Comprehensive School was something that I cherished very dearly.” He made the remark as he recalled having been a student at what was then the Valley Secondary School.
Mr. Lake commented on his 1994 attempt to be elected as the representative for Valley South. “It was to me something I really looked upon in those days as perhaps a challenge. I really wanted to keep my hand in after having hands-on the education service in Anguilla. I thought one way of doing that was perhaps to become an Anguillian representative in the House of Assembly; but that didn’t pan out because ANA lost…but I am still extremely interested and supportive.”
His wife, Mrs. Madeline Lake, was in Anguilla during that time. She worked for two years as a primary school teacher.
“There has been tremendous economic progress in Anguilla,” he observed. “I think that perhaps it is something that eventually would have taken place. I welcome it to a certain extent but I do have my concerns that it hasn’t really been planned properly in that there some social matters that mitigate against the development of the island eg: housing, schools and other social services. These are prerequisites I think and I am somewhat concerned that there was no real planning to actually tackle these before thinking about bringing in [certain development] into the island. I think one should have planned it much better.”