The Tribune

FREEPORT – The Grand Bahama Authority awarded scholarships to graduating seniors through its Top Achievers awards programme.

“Over the course of the past five years, hundreds of deserving students on Grand Bahama Island have been given a chance to pursue tertiary education either here or abroad through Top Achiever scholarships awarded by GBPA,” said Geneva Rutherford, director community relations.

At present, there are currently 108 students enrolled in the scholarship programme.

Joining the ranks as the highest achiever in their graduating classes were:

• Hilniqua Gibson from the Grand Bahama Academy of Seventh Day Adventists. A 4.0 student from grades one through 12, she passed six BGCSEs last year, and got an A in Mathematics.

She is currently awaiting the results of four more.

Walking under the theme, ‘With our feet on the ground, we reach for the stars’, valedictorian Hilniqua captured GBPA’s top achiever award along with nine subject awards, and plans to attend Kettering University in the Fall to study Chemical Engineering.

• Grand Bahama Catholic High School valedictorian Royell Bowleg has sat 12 BGCSEs. Her institute of interest is the College of the Bahamas, where she will major in Biology, after having attained a cumulative GPA of 3.96 and subject awards in Literature, Biology, Physics, Spanish, Religious Studies, Mathematics and English.

• Bishop Michael Eldon High School head boy, Chadwin Hanna Jr.

“Drive and ambition have helped us reach this point. My prayer is that we never lose our ambition for success. We have not arrived. We have not reached the pinnacle of our success. There is still work to be done,” he told fellow graduates.

With aspirations of becoming a neurosurgeon or engineer, Chadwin has successfully passed eight BGCSEs, and got five As.

He has a combined SAT score of 1930.

long with GBPA’s top achiever award, he was presented with the Anita Osman “Lux Mentis” award, Principal’s award for Best All Around Graduate, Lilla Gonsalves Prize for Mathematics, and the Physics prize.

At commencement exercises at Bishop Michael Eldon High School, guest speaker Michael Pintard lauded the graduates for their ethics and excellence and imparted a few words of advice.

“You represent the generation not simply focused on employment but leadership,” he said.

“Think and speak optimistically,” Mr Pintard said. “Find your passion and do you.”

“The Grand Bahama Port Authority congratulates the entire ‘Class of 2013’, and we are pleased to recognise the outstanding accomplishment of all of our top achievers,” said Ms Rutherford.