DEANNA FRASER — balancing work and play
DEANNA Fraser, who plans to be a future robotics engineer, has a passion for maths and the sciences.
But the Campion College first former isn’t all about academics; she has plans to dance, play netball, and join the engineering club.
She mastered the art of balancing academics with extra-curricular activities while still a student at Vaz Preparatory School and was prepapring for the Grade Six Achievement Test (GSAT). In addition to the heavy workload then, she was a part of the school’s Junior Schools’ Challenge Quiz team, she was a Brownie, she did ballet, and she also earned a space on the netball team, despite the fact that she was unable to get fully involved.
The delicate balance, Deanna reasoned, helped her to achieve her stellar GSAT score, which was an average of 99.9 per cent. It was a surprise, she admits, as the average was higher than all of her practice scores.
“I don’t think I’ve ever got such a high average; and I’m actually very surprised that I received a scholarship because there were so many good grades across the island,” the modest youngster said.
Deanna was one of 31 students from across the country who were awarded scholarships by the Jamaica National Building Society Foundation at its annual scholarship awards reception in September, as candidate for the parish of Kingston. She and another student tied for the top award for the parish.
Deanna’s mother, Kerron Jones-Fraser, said her daughter’s achievement was the result of many months of hard work with support from both parents.
“Deanna had a lot of homework; therefore, we had to ensure that she got her homework done after the classes in the evenings. We had to re-check them for accuracy, and, if she wasn’t able to make corrections at night, we would ensure that she did them in the morning before school,” Jones-Fraser explained.
“My study and revision were done at school most times,” added Deanna. “We also had extra lessons that would end after they were supposed to, and then when I got home I had homework and [mommy and daddy] also helped me to revise.”
While her focus remains firmly set on continuing to achieve high academic goals, Deanna is now enjoying new subjects, such as Latin, and is looking forward to the pursuit of new extra-curricular engagements.
“I’m looking forward to joining the engineering club; and I plan to do netball, join the dance society and continue with ballet,” she said.
That’s where her father, Dwight comes in. He said his role is to “help to shape the principles that she needs to commit to; and help her to balance play, entertainment and work”.
JN presented a total of 15 scholarships to parish winners. In addition, three county winners were named based on their participation in the JN School Savers programme, and 13 other recipients were children of JN Group employees.