ST FRANCIS OF ASISI GIRLS SCHOOL LAUNCHES 50TH ANNIVERSARY ([PAGE 11)

SAINT Francis of Assisi Girls Senior High School (SHS) in Jirapa, in the Jirapa District in the Upper West Region, has launched its golden jubilee anniversary.
The school, which is the oldest SHS in both the Upper East and West regions, is also the third SHS in the three northern regions after Tamale Senior High School and St Charles Senior High School also at Tamale.
The ceremony, which is on the theme: "Fifty Years of Quality Catholic Education: Empowering the Girl-child", was graced by past students, priests, parents and students. It also marked the beginning of a series of activities earmarked for the anniversary, which would be climaxed in September, next year.
Established in 1959 by the Catholic church, the objective was to encourage girls in the northern part of the country, some of whom were coming from various socio-cultural backgrounds, to embrace education. It was also to cultivate and nurture the girls academically and spiritually to be conscious of the their duties as women and to become productive citizens.
Launching the anniversary, the Deputy Upper West Regional Minister, Mrs Winifred Dy-Yakah, paid tribute to the church for its contribution to the region, and described Saint Francis SHS as one of the landmark contributions of the church.
She said the government placed high premium on the empowerment of women, hence its support to every step intended to champion the education of the girl-child.
Mrs Dy-Yakah, therefore, charged all stakeholders, particularly past students of the school, to be at the forefront in ensuring that the school continued to produce fully baked SHS graduates with very outstanding results.
She commended the entire staff and students for the peaceful atmosphere the school continued to enjoy.
The headmistress of the school, Rev. Sister Janis Gbie, expressed appreciation to all and sundry who had, in diverse ways, contributed to the growth and development of the school within the last 50 years.
She said inadequate boreholes on the school premises was making life unbearable for both students and teachers, adding that, "The school presently has two boreholes that are not functioning effectively to meet its water supply needs.”
On the academic performance of the school, the headmistress said results of the school had not been stable in recent times, but latest results revealed a remarkable improvement of 100 per cent passes.
She commended the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) for its continued support to the school, and mentioned the construction of a three-storey girls hostel and a library complex as some of the projects being supported by the GETFund.
Rev Sister Gbie reiterated the need for the school to be fenced to ward off intruders and stray animals.