Eight years ago while teaching at St Hugh’s High School for Girls in Kingston, Duane Burke was so impressed by a batch of students that it inspired him to start a programme for potential achievers.

“Normally, girls are distracted and hold grudges, but not these girls. I always wanted to do something with an elite group and they really pushed me,” he said.

His dream became reality two years later when he started Sophomore Academics with Lance McFarlane, a like-minded maths teacher at Wolmer’s Girls’ School.

The accelerated exam programme is designed to prepare students to sit the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) before they get to fifth form.

“I had it mind for some time to let students do exams before fifth form because they are too wired in that direction. Plus, it allows them to sit fewer subjects when they reach fifth form,” Burke explained.

Sophomore Academics began in 2010 with 19 students. Since then, it has attracted over 200 students. The current roster has 50 students, who attend classes at the United Theological College in St Andrew. Initially, the nine-month term offered classes in maths and English language but has expanded to include accounts and English literature. For their next season, Sophomore Academics plans to introduce literature and sociology to its curriculum.

Among the first cohort was Davia Henry, one of the students who impressed Burke at St Hugh’s. She successfully did maths and English at CSEC, passing with grades one and two, respectively. She is currently a second-year accounts major at the University of the West Indies and works as Sophomore Academics’ accountant.

“The programme really helped me a lot. What I have achieved I owe a lot to Mr Burke and Mr McFarlane,” she said.

Many recruits learn about the Saturday programme through word of mouth, which Burke describes as “the best form of advertisement”.

Anthony Ramsay was a 14-year-old third form student at Calabar High School (Burke’s alma mater) when his aunt Nadine Ramsay heard about Sophomore Academics. She enrolled him in the 2015 programme because “I wanted him to accelerate because I knew he had the capacity”. Her assessment was accurate. Ramsay was successful in CSEC maths, English language, English literature and accounts.

Other than Davia and Anthony, Sophomore Academics success stories include:

• Wavanie Henry, a fifth form student at Wolmer’s Girls’ School who ranked seventh in Jamaica in English language in 2014;

• Alison Ricketts, a fifth form student at Immaculate Conception High School who ranked third in the Caribbean in English language in 2015; and

• Rehema Clarke, a third former at Wolmer’s Girls’ School who achieved a straight A profile at CSEC maths in 2014.

For administrators at Sophomore Academics, education is paramount; educating outside the box even more so. As such, they design the programme to not only impart theoretical knowledge, but to empower students with life-skills. For example, each term Burke and McFarlane assign their recruits labels such as Phalanx, Young Turks, Exodus and Wild Things.

“These names are critical. They realise they have to live up to their titles…it gives them a sense of belonging and pride,” McFarlane, a Kingston College old boy, noted.

“We want to develop a culture where there is not too much work, so they (students) won’t be tired of being around us. In time, we want to be written on Google…it’s how you move from the unknown to the known,” added Burke.