STUDENTS at the violence-plagued Kingston Technical High School were on Thursday lectured on how to deal with grief and trauma, resolve conflicts peacefully and how to adopt responsible sexual behaviour.

The lectures formed part of the school’s biennial Ladies’ Day activities, which came at a time when the school was trying to boost morale among its population.

Under the theme ‘Girls of Virtue, Ladies of Class’, female students were the centre of the day’s activities, which included an interactive presentation by Angella Grandison-Reid of sponsors GraceKennedy on the importance of healthy eating habits and a lively discussion on responsible sexual practices and habits hosted by a representative of local social-education outfit, Ja-Styles.

“As girls of virtue you have the right to say NO! Me not ready for that (sex) yet,” the speaker told the young ladies.

The students also participated in several other small group discussions on a wide range of topics including grooming and etiquette, the viability of information technology as a career choice, nutrition and health, and the effect of HIV infection on society.

With the male students acting as helpers for the day, the girls were treated to lunch by the teachers and staff, and received special packages from GraceKennedy.

Come next year the roles will be reversed when the school observes Males’ Day, the first of which was held in 2004.

The school has been the subject of many discussions in recent weeks after making headlines when several boys were injured in a fight between rival gangs at the school.

Only days earlier, a female teacher was alleged to have been sexually assaulted by a group of male students.

On Thursday, the school’s principal Georgette Palmer indicated that the school had moved beyond its recent past.

“The school is quiet, the school is peaceful. We are going about our normal business,” Palmer said.

“Kingston Technical was never about that and that is an isolated incident. In our school we insist that our students are disciplined,” she added, noting that efforts were being made to remove the students involved in the gang fight from the school.

“We are taking care of that situation. They are currently before the school board for disciplinary action,” she said.