MONTEGO BAY, St James – Though he was ridiculed for wanting to attend the notorious St James High School in Montego Bay as a youngster, Josan Williams held his head up and wore the school colours with pride.

Now, the 17-year-old Williams has completed grade 11 at the Montego Bay-based secondary school with 11 Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) subjects and is looking forward to smashing his goals in Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE).

“I remember in primary school when I stated that St James High School is my first choice and that is where I wanted to go, it was like a culture shock. A teacher was like, ‘what? 94.4 [per cent] average and you want to go to St James High School?’ A few peers and other teachers were like, ‘no sah, go to a traditional high school!’ But, I really liked the school and the entire atmosphere,” Williams told the Jamaica Observer West.

Williams, a past student of the Corinaldi Avenue Primary School in Montego Bay, shared that these comments did not deter him from attending the secondary school of his choice because he needed “somewhere his peers wouldn’t be” as he battled severe low self-esteem.

He also told the Observer West that with his father, Joseph Williams, being the head of the school, he grew up seeing the changes being made and he simply “wanted to be a part of that.”

“Being the son of the principal, I was seeing how the school was changing and hearing about the past was very interesting because when you look at it now…you’d be surprised to hear how it was in the past, so we were seeing a great shift and I wanted to be a part of that new initiative of greatness,” said Josan.

“I also wanted a blank slate because it was somewhere that I would not have a lot of my former schoolmates because I had a personal issue with self-esteem and self-hate, so I needed somewhere that I could grow away from all those who knew me before. I wanted a brand new start and it was perfect. Seeing how people scorned there [St James High] at first and I knew not many people wanted to go there, so I was glad to go there.”

Josan told the Observer West that after five years at the secondary institution and being named head boy for the year 2020-2021 and walking away with 11 CSEC subjects, is a huge win in his eyes, but his battle with online schooling was not an easy one.

“I would have to say that the battle was more within than it was on the outside because online schooling wasn’t easy, it is more effective being there in person but it was a new experience. It was like college, you have to take charge of your learning,” he argued.

“I had to be the one to discipline myself and say okay you will have to wake up on time for online classes, you have to pay attention and try not to be distracted because when you’re on your phone it is easy to get distracted, so it was a difficult battle in the first half.”

Though he didn’t get all distinctions, the young man said he is elated to have performed so well in his exams.

“I know that I wanted to pass all of my subjects, I was aiming for all [grade] ones, that didn’t happen, but I am so very proud of what I achieved. I’m glad I did well,” he told the Observer West.

This achievement, Josan said, also marks a new journey in his life – one that is filled with self-love and acceptance. His parents, he said, are overjoyed.

“They are very glad. I remember the day of the results, the next morning I woke up to about 20 messages saying congratulations and my father is proud and he’s telling everybody. My mother was posting me on her WhatsApp so it was a lot of support and congratulations,” he shared.

“But it was also congratulations on my self-growth, moving away from the self-hate [I experienced] in grade six to a more self-loving part of me. I did not have very high self-esteem, not because of peers but I did not learn how to love myself at first but after a while I grew with the help of my parents and my siblings. And I also grew in my academic greatness.”

Now, as he tackles the sixth form programme at the St James High School, Jason is looking forward to topping his CSEC passes.

His main ambition, he told the Observer West, is to become an entrepreneur.

“I would love to become an entrepreneur, especially something in computer and technology because looking at the world right now, crypto-currencies are becoming a new thing. We are now moving away from paper money so we’ve seen that technology is becoming a huge part of today’s society, so I would love to have a business or venture in that area,” said the student.

His mother, Deloris Brown-Williams, told the Observer West that both she and her husband are proud of their son’s achievements.

“I am elated. And I am excited that he was able to do it. That is his effort, it wasn’t an easy task, but I applaud him for his efforts. As parents, it was our responsibility to be behind him to ensure that we provided the support for him, but he did this all on his own merit,” said Brown-Williams.

The elder Williams has also lauded Josan for his exceptional work.

“I feel good and it was expected. It should have been 12 or more, and I expected all distinctions but because of the [coronavirus pandemic] and I know he was busy with basketball but he refocused in the latter part and came through with 11 subjects. It was a good performance in light of the pandemic,” he said.

The St James High principal noted that when he took over the helm at the institution, he had one plan and that was to transform it.

“I came here on a mission because I learned of the stigma, and I knew that it didn’t have to be that way. So, I came with the determination to change it. And it has changed. There are going to be even greater things coming from this school. St James High School is now different from what they used to call ‘senior school’. It is a different era,” the elder Williams stressed.