Cornwall College (CC) old boys who attended the Montego Bay, St James-based school between the early 1960s and early 1970s can’t seem to meet without mentioning, understandably, the name Bevill de Bruin, short for Bevill St Elmo de Bruin.

The tall, lanky native of Sri Lanka, the former Ceylon, not only managed to win the enduring admiration of his students, but principals as well, one of whom was to say of him “I met a man, a real man, a man whose memories time will not erase”.

As a further effort to memorialise the man who spent 35 years at their beloved CC, the Cornwall College Old Boys’ Association of New York (CCOBANY) recently awarded two mathematics scholarships in his name to two lucky students at the all-boys’ school.

Patrick Rosegreen received the Bevill de Bruin Scholarship for Excellence in Mathematics and schoolmate Howard Malcolm Jr the Bevill de Bruin Scholarship for Outstanding CC Student, capping off a successful academic year.

de Bruin began teaching at Cornwall College in 1962, having taught 18 years before that at the Royal College in Colombo, the Sri Lankan capital. His enormous influence at both schools remains evident in the fact that the two institutions bear the same motto: Disce aut Discede (Learn or Leave).

While he taught several subjects equally well and was also an outstanding sports coach, it is for mathematics, notably additional mathematics that de Bruin would be a legend at Cornwall. His General Certificate of Education O’ Level results were almost always off the charts. He died in 2003.

CCOBANY said the scholarship – full name Bevill Debruin Scholarship for Excellence in Academics, Sports, and Citizenship – won by Patrick Rosegreen, was awarded in memory of the multifaceted, extraordinary, and talented CC educator who devoted his life to creating “Men of Might” at their beloved alma mater.

The annual award of US$1,000 goes to an outstanding recipient who must “exhibit integrity and character that are beyond reproach, while pursuing and maintaining scholastic excellence”.

The Bevill de Bruin Scholarship that goes to Howard Malcolm Jr is awarded annually to an 11th grade student who “exhibits excellence in math and whose character is unreproachable… in addition to possessing the dedication to pursue both pure and applied mathematics with a strong focus on a more abstract line of mathematical reasoning and the logic of processes and methods”.

CCOBANY added: “The scholarship programme works in conjunction with the Cornwall College Mentoring & Tutoring Initiative (CCMTI) which includes the mandatory assignment of a mentor in furtherance of supporting the school in the continued effort to produce ‘Men of Might’.”

— Desmond Allen