FULL classes resumed yesterday at the Jose Marti Technical High School in St Catherine, after the completion of a new classroom block to accommodate grade seven and nine students, some of whom were sent home during the middle of last week.

Education Minister Andrew Holness, who had gone to the school last week and asked the contractors to speed up the work so that the 480 students who were asked to stay home could return to classes, visited the school again yesterday morning. The work was completed over the weekend.

Yesterday, the school’s principal, Bevar Moodie, said that for the first time since the start of the school year the entire school population of 2,100 students was present.

“The minister came last week to see what the problem was and he spoke to all the parties concerned and asked the contractors to ensure that the classrooms were ready for this morning, and when he came this morning the classrooms were indeed ready and the children seated,” Moodie told the Observer.

Director of communications in the education ministry, Charlene Ashley, said Holness was very pleased that the eight classrooms were ready.

“He spent the time talking to some of the students and he promised to look into giving them some fans because inside the buildings are hot,” she said.