KUCHING, Aug 29: Today marked a historical milestone for St Joseph’s International School (SJIS), Kuching as it celebrated the graduation of its first batch of A-level students.
Throughout the event, all participants adhered to the standard operating procedure (SOP) under the Recovery Movement Control Order (RMCO).
The school has managed to produce students of high calibre with 50 per cent of its students receiving straight A and all passing their examinations.
All graduates will continue their study either in local or overseas higher learning institutions. This programme successfully went through 18 months even in the midst of Covid-19 pandemic.
The ceremony this morning started with the arrival of members of the Board of Directors of St Joseph’s Family of Schools which include notable figures such as State Legal Counsel Datuk Seri JC Fong, and Gerald Lee, who is the first principal to take over the leadership of St Joseph’s School from the La Salle Brothers way back in 1988.
Principals from the three schools within the Family of Schools as well as parents of the graduates were present. Also attending were the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Kuching, His Grace Simon Poh and the chief executive officer of St Joseph Family of Schools, Christopher Chua.
In his speech, Poh thanked the first principal of SJIS, Brother Paul Hough, FMS who together with Archbishop Emeritus Datuk John Ha and Lee, the then director of St Joseph’s Family of Schools, started SJIS in 2017.
“The mission of the school is to instil human values in the students, for example, mercy, forgiveness and harmony which are for the common good of society, especially in a multi-racial and multi-religious country like Malaysia,” said Poh.
Chua, on the other hand highlighted the rich history of the schools named after St Joseph in Kuching which dates back to 1882.
“SJIS is not just three years old but 138 years. This school together with St Joseph’s Private School continue the aspirations of the founding Mill Hill Fathers who wanted to bring good holistic education to the children in Kuching,” said Chua.
Both Poh and Chua advised the graduates to come back to Sarawak after their tertiary education to give back to society, just like thousands of alumni of the schools of St Joseph in Kuching who have returned, not only to contribute to the local community but also to their alma mater.
Meanwhile, SJIS principal, Brother Robert Teoh, who is a Marist Brother, also mentioned about his founder, St Marcellin Champagnat’s care and love for children.
“With this charisma in mind, teachers in the school have shown real love to their students through their dedication and sacrifice for the sake of their students,” said Teo.
After that, each student was given an opportunity to say a few words of gratitude on stage. Then came the highlight of the ceremony where the six graduates were awarded their certificates.
Ivy Ng received the highest achievement (top in Malaysia) in the IT subject at A-level for 2019.
The ceremony ended with the blessing of the graduates by Poh.-DayakDaily
