Ross Sheil, Staff Reporter 
Students and teachers at the National Baptist Basic School Career Day on Greenwich Street, Trench Town, St. Andrew, held on Tuesday, May 9. Five-year-old Shanae Sanford (centre) one day hopes to be Prime Minister, an ambition supported by her principal Pauline Davis (far right). -CONTRIBUTED
BEING BORN in the inner cities should be no limit to your aspirations, was the message of a recent Career Day at the National Baptist Basic School on Greenwich Street, Trench Town, St. Andrew.
A few weeks ago, on May 9, during Education Week, the school challenged children to pick their chosen career and have their parents make them an outfit. Principal Pauline Davis says the annual event is part of the school's ongoing efforts to lift the children's aspirations.
"I know the negative things that go with being an inner-city kid. We are trying to let them know that if they want to be a doctor they can be; not just a shotta or a don. When they tell us what they want to do we sit them down and tell them they can be," said Ms. Davis, who has taught at the school for 28 years.
FUTURE PROSPECTS
The photograph of the event, published today, is displayed at the school as a reminder of their aspirations to achieve one of a number of professions. Future prospects include a police inspector, a chef and even Prime Minister. Five-year-old Shanae Sanford, who one day wants to take over at Jamaica House, went as far as having her mother make her a wig, modelled on the 'bob' style of Portia Simpson Miller.
"I was overwhelmed at the impact; not just the children
benefited but the community as well. They want us to let them know that we love them so much, that they're not just ghetto kids, but kids."
DONATIONS
The school recently benefited from two donations made via Dr. Henley Morgan's Agency for Inner-City Renewal, located a stone's throw away on West Road. Dr. Morgan, whose father Cyril founded the school, helped in gathering a $760,000 donation from the German Embassy as well as $80,000 from the
Ex-Police Association, a group representing former Jamaican police officers who migrated to work in the United States.
Johnson&Johnson are also continuing to support the school, after helping repair its physical amenities and damage to its roof caused by Hurricane Gilbert in 1988.
