INTRODUCTION

INDOMITABLE, PRESTIGIOUS, remarkable, outstanding; these are just a few words to describe this hallowed institution. Nestled on a hilltop, Westwood High stands tall in celebrating 140 years of transformation, resilience, growth and success. Journey with us as we travel through time to honour this beloved institution that moulded the lives of extraordinary ladies for generations.

MANCHESTER PEN

The school began in January 1882 in a house in Manchester Pen, about one mile from Stewart Town, Trelawny, with six little girls and a teacher, Miss Annie Fray. The manager was the Reverend William Menzie Webb, pastor of the Stewart Town Baptist Church, whose main interest was transcending the barriers of racial discrimination by ensuring that girls of dark complexion had access to secondary education.

Reverend Webb, along with his colleague, Rev George Henderson, leased the house in which the school started as Manchester School and after a successful year, another building was erected and the name changed to Trelawny Girls’ School. In 1891, the school was moved to its present site and approximately four years later, upon completion of all school buildings, Westwood High School for Girls was opened under the leadership of a new principal, Miss Alice Townsend, sent out and paid by the English Committee.

SCHOOL GATE

Before climbing the hill, there are two structures to take notice of. The first was recently repainted by the

Westwood Old Girls’ Association, under the leadership of then president, Andrea Crossfield, and is for students travelling to Jackson Town and beyond.

The other is the Zulu Hut, one of the signature landmarks of every Westwood student. Renovated by the Parent-Teacher Association, this gazebo provides a waiting area for those students who travel to Stewart Town and to other destinations in the direction of Brown’s Town.

As you climb the hill, the first point of contact is the security post where visitors must state the order of business and all must undergo a sanitisation protocol.

Then comes the deep bend where you will find the principal’s flat. This serves as an important marker for students as this is where the silence zone begins.

Approaching the end of a tiring climb, one can see the whitewashed wall which is the point of no return for students as they are not allowed to leave after passing that point.

The trek over the hill ends in the quadrangle, where you will find the Q classrooms and two tuck shops, as well as the 1891 main building which not only houses the administrative office but also one of the boarding facilities.

Fun fact: A classroom on the Quad once served as the Chevannes Dormitory.

HALL OF FAME (OFFICE HALLWAY)

Miss Alice Fray, the Manchester Pen headmistress, Miss McKenzie and Miss Alice Townsend were named as the first principals of Westwood High. The feeling persists, however, that it is friendship and commitment rather than salary and prestige which motivated them to accept the position.

After 140 years of existence in Jamaica, Westwood has had 13 principals, all of whom have been females, the latest being past student, Karen Francis, the second to lead the institution, the first being former principal, Etta Whiteman.

WESTWOOD’S ACHIEVEMENTS (TROPHY CASE)

Westwood High School for Girls has been synonymous with excellence for 140 years. The school’s accolades span the arts, the sciences, mathematics and the vocational disciplines and it is known for strong disciplinary practices. Westwood prides itself in turning the girls who enter the school into ladies by the time they leave. Westwoodites, past and present, continue to make their mark in this world by excelling in academics, sports and various extracurricular activities.

QUIZ TEAM

The team entered the Schools’ Challenge Quiz competition under the leadership of Sixth Form Coordinator, Romain Simmonds, along with other members of staff. While they are yet to bring home the trophy, the team’s resilience has earned awards for being the top all-girls school in the country. The school’s population is confident that the commitment of the team will reap even greater success in the future.

JACARANDA TREE

Prior to Hurricane Sandy in 2012, the Jacaranda Tree towered over the amphitheatre, providing shelter from the sun, an eating area for students during break time and a place of serenity for those who needed it.

The amphitheatre in the past was where a smaller population of students gathered for devotions and school-leaving ceremonies.

WILLIAM WEBB AUDITORIUM

Named in honour of the school’s founder, this central heartthrob point is home for school functions such as devotions, graduation ceremonies, PTA meetings and other school events. It is also one of two emergency gathering points.

Ladies will fondly (or not) remember lining up in grades and gathering for worship and also for an overall check by the prefects. Don’t you dare forget your hymnals and make sure you are lined up in alphabetical order!

GUN COURT

The Gun Court, a former block of classrooms, received its name because during the time in which it was built, the Jamaica Gun Court was also established. This block will now serve as a new home for our science labs in honour of past principal, Eileen Piggott.

SCHOOL SONG

Ever heard angels sing? Westwoodites singing the melodious school song will give you a glimpse. Composed and arranged by Dionne Boreland and Charmaine Jarrett, class of 1982, the school song has been a hallmark of the high standards held by the school and the bond of sisterhood that the institution encourages.

PARSONS DINING COMPLEX AND NEW KITCHEN

The Parsons Dining Complex, consisting of three dining areas: The Foyer, The Henderson and The Intercontinental, (which is the big dining room), a tuck room for boarders, a kitchen and a washroom, accommodated scores of students over the years as they practised the Westwood way – using knives and forks to eat while engaging in polite conversation. Rumour has it that the piano, located in what students called the top dining room, played itself on multiple occasions during the nights.

It is important to note that Henderson was formerly a dormitory, affectionately called Big Yard as it housed close to 60 boarders.

Westwood has not survived these 140 years without some major challenges. One such tragedy was the fire in May 2017 that destroyed the kitchen and dining room area.

The flames that burnt that night just further ignited the resilience of the staff, students and community as all worked together to rebuild. The temporary new kitchen and dining area was built in September 2019.

SCHOOL UNIFORMS

Westwood students can be identified by their very distinct uniform

which has barely changed over the years. Sixth-form students wear a white blouse along with a navy blue skirt or pants, while other students wear a navy blue tunic with a sweetheart neckline, a white blouse and most notably a ‘jippi-jappa’ hat. This straw hat is encircled with a navy blue and yellow ribbon to complement the students’ tunic. Did you know that Westwood is the only school in Jamaica to maintain the tradition of the jippi-jappa hat? Yes, the hat brings out a style in a tunic which is a common design and may not have otherwise been noticed.

DORMS

Due to the fact that Westwood is one of the five remaining boarding schools in Jamaica, we attract students from all over the island, highlighting the need for multiple boarding facilities, aka dormitories. There are currently four boarding facilities under the care and guidance of several house mothers who stand in the gap as parents while the students are away from home.

- The Karl Fuller Hostel, named after the renowned organist and former board chairman, Karl Fuller, was dedicated in February 1994 and accommodates students in grades seven to 10.

- The Princess Alice Building was named after Princess Alice, who opened the building in the 1970s

- The Main Building serves as one of the oldest of the boarding facilities on campus. It serves as a home away from home for students from grades seven to 10.

- The Knight Building was opened to students on Tuesday, June 17, 2003, and currently hosts upper school students. This facility was named after Millicent Knight, another former principal.

In the past, there were the Henderson, Woodlands and Chevannes dormitories.

Did you know that on the Woodlands property is the first guide house in the Western Hemisphere?

ETTA WHITEMAN BUILDING

Named after past principal, Etta Whiteman, who served from 1976-1988, this building complex holds the school’s library, the main computer lab, the art room and two classrooms.

IVIN LOGAN BUILDING

In honour of Ivin Logan, past principal who served for 11 years, this complex consists of classrooms, a staffroom, the media centre, a computer lab and offices for teachers and guidance counsellors. It represents the backbone of the school’s physical infrastructure as there are nine classrooms and it is also the mecca of technological prowess.

CHURCHES

In 1898, four Jamaican trustees, representing the leading denominations – Baptist, Church of England, Presbyterian and Wesleyan – set up a board of management. Prior to school being thrusted online as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, students who were a part of the Baptist, Anglican and Methodist groups in school attended worship services on a Sunday at their respective churches in Stewart Town. The trust stipulated, among other things, that girls should be admitted regardless of colour, class or creed, and that they should “receive an education at the lowest cost compatible with highest efficiency”.

SIXTH FORM

After 32 years of absolution, the sixth-form programme was re-established in 2014. Now in its eighth year of existence, the programme boasts an exceptional CAPE programme gaining as high as a 98 per cent pass rate in recent years, with students receiving national and regional awards. Ladies from Westwood and other schools eagerly seek entry to study the sciences, the social sciences, the arts and the technical subjects. The sixth-form campus was formerly the Woodlands property which comprised dormitories for students and cottages for teachers.

Fun fact: The Main House at Woodlands was the home of the Reverend Menzie Webb and his family.

HOME ECONOMICS LAB

Built in 1944, the Domestic Science Centre, affectionately called DS, saw many culinary spectacles as over the years, staff and students honed their skills in the kitchen for various school assignments, bake sales and concerts. It was renamed the Enid Beale Home Economics Centre in 2002 in honour of Enid Beale, who in the past, played the pivotal role of vice-principal.

BIRD HAVEN

Staff members who reside on campus mainly lodge at Bird Haven, which got its name from the frequent moments in which past principal, Miss May Jeffrey Smith, used to do bird watching.

CONCLUSION

Westwood High is proud to claim the friendship of all stakeholders who have added character to the pupils by virtue of their own strength. We forge ahead and will ‘By Prayer and By Work’, ‘Ora et Labore’, remain an oasis of courtesy, a commendable seat of learning, and above all, an example of a Christian community.

This beacon on a hill still stands as the standard of excellence in all areas.