In Kingston, Jamaica, a deliberate, sweeping educational renewal is taking root at St Andrew Preparatory School, driven by Principal Dr. Carol Blanchard’s vision of prioritizing whole-student development over narrow academic focus. Since Dr. Blanchard took the helm in July 2023, the institution has reimagined every layer of the student experience, from classroom curricula to extracurricular programming, and that progress recently earned a major vote of confidence: a JMD $500,000 donation to the school’s track and field program from local corporate partner Express Canteen Services, timed to support preparations for the upcoming annual Prep Champs athletic championships.
What sets St Andrew Prep’s current trajectory apart is its intentional focus on balancing strong academic outcomes with character building, social skill development, and athletic excellence. Dr. Blanchard, a veteran educator with a track record of turning around programs at other Jamaican preparatory schools, has centered her leadership on a simple but transformative idea: in an age where students can access any fact online for free, schools must shift their focus from delivering content to teaching information literacy, emotional intelligence, and practical life skills that prepare young people for long-term success.
This approach has already yielded measurable gains across every area of school life. In academic competition, the school advanced from only reaching the first round of the prestigious Junior Schools’ Challenge Quiz to breaking into the quarter-finals this year. A new robotics program, paired with the school’s longstanding chess initiative, has been a standout success: 42 out of 45 students entered in robotics competitions earned top marks this year, and Dr. Blanchard noted a clear, positive correlation between participation in STEM-focused extracurriculars and improved mathematics performance across the curriculum. Students have also excelled in the Kangaroo Mathematics challenge and the BIBRAS computational thinking competition, with several advancing to international rounds of the events.
Extracurricular success extends far beyond STEM. St Andrew Prep remains a dominant contender in preparatory school chess, gunning for its third consecutive championship title, while new student leadership and communication programs like Children’s Parliament and the impromptu speaking initiative Literary Voices have helped hundreds of students build public confidence and communication skills. On the athletic track, the program has been building momentum after a fifth-place finish at last year’s Prep Champs, with coach Patrick Johnson noting this year’s roster is deeper and stronger than ever.
The JMD $500,000 donation from Express Canteen could not have come at a better time, Dr. Blanchard explained, particularly as an independent school that receives no government funding and relies entirely on student tuition to cover operating costs. Shifting economic conditions across Jamaica have made corporate partnerships critical to expanding programs, retaining top teaching talent, and supporting high-cost extracurriculars like athletics that draw strong interest from families.
For Express Canteen’s leadership, the investment aligns perfectly with the company’s core philosophy of “Feed Your Dreams.” Co-owner Ryan Foster emphasized that the company’s support is about more than just financial assistance—it is a commitment to backing a model of education that prioritizes holistic growth. “What I admire about Dr. Blanchard’s work is how you are building a holistic environment for students to self-actualise, not just on the field of play, but also in the classroom,” Foster said. His wife and business partner Simone Foster added that the partnership has always centered on empowering young Jamaicans, noting that the donation is part of a long-term commitment to the school’s mission.
Track coach Patrick Johnson says the funding will allow the program to expand access to quality coaching for all interested students, rather than only focusing on elite contenders, as the team ramps up preparations for this year’s championships. While he remains cautiously optimistic, noting that competition results can be unpredictable, he confirmed this year’s team has already outperformed expectations in pre-championship development meets.
The transformation has already translated to growing community demand for places at the school: after turning away more than 30 Grade One applicants two years ago, the school was oversubscribed by more than 50 students for the 2024 intake. For Dr. Blanchard, that interest is validation of the holistic model, but the work is far from over. With the Prep Champs just around the corner, she says the school is ready to exceed expectations: “Look out for us. We might just be the champions this year.”