Severely damaged, sparsely enrolled
Nine rural primary schools face possible consolidation after hurricane ravages
Published:Sunday | January 25, 2026 | 12:16 AMCorey Robinson - Senior Staff Reporter
At least nine primary schools are now under review for possible consolidation, with decisions pending on the future placement of their students, after extensive hurricane-related damage further weakened already struggling rural institutions with very low enrolment.
No contractors have been assigned to these schools by the National Education Trust (NET), the agency overseeing repairs to approximately 716 public schools islandwide.
According to NET, the nine schools sustained severe damage during the passage of the Category 5 hurricane last October that could significantly affect their ability to reopen.
The schools are Mulgrave, Nightingale Grove, Lalor, and Giddy Hall primary schools in St Elizabeth; Clydesdale Primary in St Ann; Sunderland Primary in St James; and Cairn Curran, Chantilly, and Paul Island primary and infant schools in Westmoreland. NET’s most recent damage assessment indicates that the extent of destruction at these institutions has raised questions about their long-term viability.
Most of the schools are located in remote farming communities where declining, ageing, and migrating populations have steadily reduced student enrolment over the years.
Among the damage recorded was that “Nightingale Grove Primary lost 90 per cent of its roof, an entire kitchen, and a three-bedroom cottage”, while at Lalor Primary, there was “loss of roof to a significant portion of the building that houses the classroom and administrative office … all furniture, books and equipment were damaged by water”. Other schools, including Giddy Hall Primary, suffered major damage to windows and doors, as well as drainage and sanitation problems.
SENSITIVE ISSUE
NET Executive Director Latoya Harris-Ghartley explained that consolidation could result in schools being fully or partially closed, with students transferred to neighbouring institutions. She cautioned, however, that the issue is highly sensitive and must take into account several factors, including enrolment size, distance to other schools, staffing arrangements, and transportation.
“It is a very delicate situation, which involves various factors, including the involvement of the unions, the movement of teachers, and transportation and grants for students. It’s a very involved process,” Harris-Ghartley told The Sunday Gleaner, noting that the Ministry of Education is managing the matter and that Cabinet will ultimately decide. She could not provide a timeline.
With consolidation under consideration, no official government-funded repairs have started at the nine schools. Administrators at three of the institutions said they were still hopeful for assistance and were unaware that their schools had been formally listed for consolidation.
Despite the conditions, three of the schools have already resumed classes, though teaching is taking place under leaking tarpaulins. They remain without electricity, and at one location, janitors are using buckets to flush toilets because there is no piped water.
NET is currently overseeing repairs at 315 Priority One schools, while 306 schools are classified as Priority Two and 95 as Priority Three, having sustained comparatively less damage.
“I have not heard anything officially from the ministry, but I should think so,” said Dahlia Ritchie-Waite, acting principal of Giddy Hall Primary in rural St Elizabeth, which has an enrolment of 33 students. “I just keep hearing rumours. But people are moving out of the community, and nobody is coming back. The community is just without... ,” she said, trailing off.
“I would be so disappointed [with consolidation] because most of my students, their parents are not able to give them money for taxis to school. At our school, they can’t even afford lunches, so I seek sponsors and donations for them, with the exception of the PATH students. We even have special needs students, and it would be a challenge for them to move around and travel,” she said, noting that the closest primary school is about 20 minutes away.
Ritchie-Waite said that since the hurricane, at least six students have relocated to Kingston but have not yet been enrolled in schools there, while two students transferred from nearby Black River Primary, which is also badly damaged.
Ryan Stone, acting principal of Mulgrave Primary, echoed similar concerns, saying consolidation would have serious implications for the school’s 33 students. He noted that three students enrolled after the hurricane and that classes are now being held under tarpaulins because several classrooms were destroyed.
“It wouldn’t be feasible for the majority of my students for transportation reasons. It is a farming community, and I don’t think they will be able to afford transportation on a daily basis. These students are quite comfortable at their school,” he said, adding that a previous proposal to merge with schools seven miles away was strongly opposed by parents and students. “I know the parents will be heavily against it.”
Nightingale Grove Primary Principal Joyce Simms-Brown told The Sunday Gleaner consolidation would also affect staff, potentially leading to demotions or job losses.
“If you are going to move my senior teacher, which school are you going to put that teacher in to ensure that he or she maintains his senior teacher position? I have one cook, an assistant cook and a janitor. Where would you put them? A primary school cannot accommodate more than two cooks, and any school you are going to consolidate Nightingale [with] will have to be able to accommodate four cooks, or unless the ministry would be willing to pay them off,” she reasoned. “But it would gravely affect everyone.”
Education Minister Senator Dr Dana Morris-Dixon said school consolidation is routinely assessed in light of changing demographics, noting that the country’s declining birthrate has already led to very low enrolment in some communities. Those pressures have been intensified by Hurricane Melissa, which caused severe damage to several campuses.
“Hurricane Melissa compounded these issues. Some schools are so damaged a new structure is required to safely resume face-to-face teaching and learning. Reconstruction of that level takes time. It can go up to a year and a half,” she told The Sunday Gleaner.
Taken together, she said, these factors mean consolidation “is something we have to think about”.
However, the minister emphasised that no permanent decisions have been made, adding that the Government will consult with “all our stakeholders” before any determination on school consolidation is finalised.
Speaking in the Senate on Friday, Morris-Dixon said work was under way at 56 of the most severely damaged schools, with contractors mobilising for another 98. The remaining schools, she said, are at various stages of procurement.
“Four hundred and forty-seven schools in Westmoreland, Hanover, St James, Trelawny, St Ann, St Elizabeth, and Manchester were severely impacted. Approximately 8,000 teachers and more than 152,000 students faced unprecedented operational disruption,” she said. “I am pleased to report that by January 14, 2026, all schools resumed teaching and learning.”
REPAIR CHALLENGES
Meanwhile, Harris-Ghartley noted that repairs across the island have been hampered by shortages of specialised materials such as standing seam sheeting and plycem boards, delays in design approvals, a lack of skilled tradesmen, and the logistical challenges of maintaining teaching during construction.
“The contractors are responding. We are competing for them along with health, private entities, and you have some contractors who have really put education first. We have opened a dialogue with contractors on the expected standards, things that we can put in place to help them move faster. So we are trying to take this from a more collaborative approach ... than [is] typical,” she said.