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Virgin Islands Department Of Education: Abdel Bazzar Is 2023 Territorial Spelling Bee Winner

by Daniel E. Ottley
written by Daniel E. Ottley

(Photo courtesy V.I. Education Department)

ST. THOMAS, USVI – Following 26 intense rounds of competition, Ricardo Richards Elementary School fifth grader Abdel Bazzar emerged as the winner of the 2023 Territorial Spelling Bee, now in its 50th year.

His winning word was “realm.”

“It feels good—really good,” Bazzar said of his win. “It definitely feels very good because apparently, only one other person has ever gone to the national spelling bee from my school.”

Other than competing virtually in his school’s Spelling Bee two years ago, this is the first year the 10-year-old participated in the full competition—placing in the top six at the district level and going all the way to claim the title of top speller in the Virgin Islands.

However, Bazzar said he knew he was up against tough contenders for the territorial competition.

“I was thinking that if Joseph, who won the St. Croix District Bee, and [Naitik] got out, I knew I had it in the bag,” he said. “But if they stayed in, I probably had a chance of losing because they were probably the best ones there.”

Bazzar said he prepared for the competition by meeting with his coach, Debora Heitzenrater, during the last 30 minutes of each school day, as well as having long study sessions at home.

“[My coach] would pick the hardest words on each page, and if I spelled them correctly, we would go to the next page,” he explained. “At home, we went through all the pages of words, we kept going and going until we finished all the pages.” Those pages, Bazzar explained, amounted to a total of about 9,000 words.

As for his hopes for taking the top spot at the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, DC, this summer, he said, “I definitely need to keep studying and I’m very proud of myself.”

Nyeema Henderson, winner of the St. Thomas-St. John District Bee, placed second in the territorial competition; and Sinaia Steven, of Claude O. Markoe Elementary School, placed third.

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Territorial Spelling Bee in the Virgin Islands, beginning in 1974, with only one of those years, 2021, the competition was not held due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“I wish you well,” Assistant Commissioner Victor Somme III told the participants. “We also want to recognize those that came before you, this is our fiftieth year of spelling bee in the Virgin Islands and we really thank our partner in this accomplishment, the Virgin Islands Daily News, they have been with us through thick and thin and they continue to support us as we send each Virgin Islands champion to the nation’s capital to participate in the national bee. This is going to be an exciting competition.”

The Virgin Islands Daily News has been the official sponsor of the Territorial Spelling Bee since 1985. The news organization will sponsor a six-night stay for two at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in National Harbor, Md., during the Memorial Day weekend, as Bazzar represents the Virgin Islands in the Scripps National Spelling Bee.

Bazzar and all participants have received prize packages of electronics, gift certificates, books, and other gifts through the generous support of local and national sponsors.

Curriculum & Instruction Program Assistant Julie Deterville is the Territorial Spelling Bee coordinator.

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Education

DLCA ANNOUNCES REOPENING OF PSI TEST CENTERS

by Daniel E. Ottley
written by Daniel E. Ottley

The Virgin Islands Department of Licensing and Consumer Affairs (“DLCA”), notifies licensees and the public that PSI resumed operations of its Test Centers in the St. Croix and St. Thomas Districts following COVID-19 closures on March 13, 2020.

To encourage safe social distancing and promote the health and well-being of customers, the PSI team, and the community who relies on the DLCA & PSI’s Test Centers have implemented a few security measures, including but not limited to those listed below:

  • Candidate Health Questionnaire: Candidates are required to complete a health questionnaire related to possible COVID-19 exposure and present it when they arrive at the PSI test center.
  • Face Coverings: Face coverings are required for all Candidates and Test Center Administrators during the entire testing experience.
  • Enhanced Cleaning: High-touch areas, including but not limited to keyboards, desktops, chair handles, check-in stations, door handles, and writing instruments are sanitized after each use.

PSI Examination sites are located on St. Croix at the Department of Licensing and Consumer Affairs, 3000 Golden Rock Shopping Center, Christiansted, VI 00820; and, on St. Thomas at the University of the Virgin Islands at 2 John Brewers Bay, Cell Building, St. Thomas, VI 00802. Please note that all checks for examinations must be payable to PSI.  The Test Site hours of operations are:

On the day of the examination, you should arrive at least 30 minutes before your appointment. This extra time is for signing, identification, and familiarizing you with the examination process. If you arrive late, you may not be admitted to the examination site and you will forfeit your examination registration fee.  Dress appropriate and walk with a jacket.

 

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CommunityEducation

The Caribbean Genealogy Library Shifts to Offering Virtual Programming and Events, Hosts its First Virtual Author Event

by Daniel E. Ottley
written by Daniel E. Ottley

September 23, 2020, St. Thomas, The Caribbean Genealogy Library (CGL), a research library for history, culture and genealogy located in St. Thomas, is shifting from in person events at the library to virtual events. The library is known for offering lectures on Virgin Islands history, workshops on conducting genealogy research, and author events. They have not held any such events since the COVID pandemic started earlier this year. CGL is following the trend that libraries in the U.S. mainland and elsewhere in the world are pursuing by developing virtual programing.

CGL will host their first virtual author event September 27th, 2020 with Danish historian and author Ann Nørregaard. Ann is the author of “Dollar fo’ Dollar Kulkvinderne på St. Thomas 1870-1917” (translation, Dollar fo ‘Dollar, The Coal Women of St. Thomas 1870-1917). Nørregaard will give her presentation from Denmark, to an audience mostly in the USVI and United States, and hosted by CGL using Zoom.

Ann’s research for “Dollar fo’ Dollar Kulkvinderne på St. Thomas 1870-1917” took three years. The book is currently available only in Danish. The book is first and foremost a depiction of the coal workers’ strikes in 1892 and 1916. It is also an attempt to describe the everyday life of the coaling women whose occupation contributed significantly to the shipping industry. The book is based on police court protocols, censuses, church books, cadastral records, newspaper articles, contemporary accounts and finally the author’s fascination with these hard-working women.

Many of the coaling workers in St. Thomas were women, though men also participated in this work. They carried heavy baskets of coal onboard steam powered vessels in the Charlotte Amalie harbor. Nørregaard explains that, “The coal work on St. Thomas was not the easiest way to earn a living, but if you, like most coal women, were the sole breadwinner, the cash settlement – “the tallies” – for every basket of coal you carried on your head was an attractive choice. The coal carriers were far from belonging to the social elite, but they were not without abilities and they emerged victorious from the two conflicts that arose with their employers.”

The conflicts are the coal carriers strike that occurred on September 12th, 1892, and the November 25th, 1916 strike of harbor workers which included the coal carriers. The latter event resulted in the formation of the first labor unions. The strikes in 1892 and 1916 were victories for the workers, who achieved higher wages and better working conditions.

In Nørregaard’s virtual presentation she will discuss why she chose to research this topic, the resources she used to conduct the research, and she will discuss the 1892 strike and the 1916 strike and what followed. She will also use census records and historic maps to illustrate where the coal women lived, with whom and under what conditions.

Ann Nørregaard has a master’s degree in history and archaeology from the University of Copenhagen. Her main interests are the history of women in the Medieval Europe, and maritime history. She is the author of several publications about Danish and maritime history.

The Caribbean Genealogy Library (CGL) was founded in 2000 with the mission to identify, preserve and provide access to Caribbean genealogy, history and cultural heritage information resources for the Virgin Islands and the Caribbean, and to encourage their use for family history documentation, education, and scholarship.

CGL is the only library on St. Thomas that focuses solely on history, culture and genealogy. It offers workshops, lectures and events through the year. The volunteer run research library is located in Al Cohen’s Plaza. Email CGL for more information on registering to attend its virtual programs at caribgenlibrary@gmail.com. You can also visit the library online at www.cgl.viand search the catalog, see indexes of records, and view digitized records.

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CommunityEducation

Communications Director Reminds VI Families about P-EBT Program, Asks for Community’s Patience as School Year Begins with Soft Opening

by Daniel E. Ottley
written by Daniel E. Ottley

 

U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS – During the Government House weekly press briefing, Richard Motta Jr., Director of Communications for the Office of the Governor, reminded the community that the Pandemic Electronic Benefits (P-EBT) program continues to issue cards to eligible students and asked for the public’s patience as the Department of Education begins the 2020-2021 school year with a two-week soft-opening period.

“Today is the first day of school for the territory’s public-school students and I want to wish all our students, teachers, faculty and staff a warm welcome back,” Mr. Motta said. “Parents and guardians, teachers and other support staff:  This week and this soft-opening-period will not be without its share of challenges. I beg your indulgence on behalf of the governor and the Department of Education, as we all navigate this unchartered territory, and ask for your continued cooperation toward our shared goal of ensuring our students have a safe and successful start to the 2020-2021 school year. “

Mr. Motta also announced that the Department of Human Services continues to issue P-EBT cards to families of students who are eligible. The Federal funding under the P-EBT program is tied to the Department of Education’s school lunch program which is why the federal government has structured the benefits in a way which issues those benefits to the individual students as opposed to the head of household as done under the SNAP program.

“By now most of you have received your P-EBT benefits in the mail,” Mr. Motta said.

Anyone with questions or concerns, including lost or damaged cards, or difficulty creating a pin, should call the P-EBT hotline at 340-772-7120 or send an email to pebt@dhs.vi.gov with P-EBT in the subject line, he said.

PUI Update

Currently tracking have 58 active cases

18,354 individuals tested to date

17,120 of those tests came back negative

1221 came back positive

1,144 individuals have recovered.

19 fatalities to date.

The 19th fatality was an 82-year-old male on St. Thomas, who passed away shortly after being admitted to the Schneider Regional Medical Center in respiratory distress.

There are no COVID-Positive patients at the Juan F. Luis Hospital and just one COVID-positive patient at the Schneider Regional Medical Center.

Unemployment

To date, the Virgin Islands Department of Labor (VIDOL) has issued 36,291 unemployment insurance checks totaling $27,772,302 million dollars to VI residents impacted by COVID-19 related job-losses.

The department has also issued an additional 26,814 Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation payments totaling $40,814,880 dollars.

VIDOL has issued $2,446,101 in Pandemic Unemployment Assistance and $1,000,005 in Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation.

In total, the Bryan-Roach Administration has issued 64,463 unemployment benefit payments to Virgin Islands residents totaling $72,033,288. Up $2 million since last week.

 

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Education

REGISTRATION OPEN FOR NEW PRESCHOOL OFFERING IN ST. THOMAS-ST. JOHN DISTRICT

by Daniel E. Ottley
written by Daniel E. Ottley

ST. THOMAS, USVI – The Virgin Islands Department of Education, St. Thomas-St. John District, will offer preschool at select district schools for the first time beginning in the 2020-2021 school year.

Registration is now open for Sugarapple PreK-4 enrollment at Yvonne Milliner-Bowsky Elementary School on St. Thomas and Julius E. Sprauve School on St. John. Children must be age four on or before December 31 to be eligible for enrollment, which is limited and offered on a first-come, first-served basis.

REGISTRATION SCHEDULE

St. Thomas – 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

July 15 & 16, 2020

  • Parents submit a Public School Registration application online, found in the “For Families” section of the www.vide.vi website (applications also available at the Curriculum Center – Edith Williams Alternative Academy)
  • Parents must report in-person, with the *registering student, at the Curriculum Center to submit the required documents below

St. John – 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

July 17, 2020

  • Parents submit a Public School Registration application online, found in the “For Families” section of the www.vide.vi website (applications also available at Julius E. Sprauve School in Cruz Bay)
  • Parents must report in-person, with the *registering student, at Julius E. Sprauve School to submit the required documents below 

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS FOR PREK-4 REGISTRATION

1. Original Birth Certificate

2. Court Appointed Adoption or Guardianship (if applicable)

3. Power of Attorney/Guardianship Affidavit – (if child is not living with one or both biological parents)

4. Virgin Islands Immunization Card

5. Health Clearance Form from East End Clinic, MCH, or Myrah Keating Smith Clinic (St. John)

6. Universal Child Health Record Form completed by a Physician (download at www.vide.vi“For Families”)

7. Valid Photo ID of Parent/Guardian registering student

8. Proof of Residency in the US Virgin Islands

  • A. Homeowners – Signed closing statement or Deed or Property Tax Receipt AND current WAPA Bill
  • B. Renters – Lease Agreement signed by the landlord and tenant and current WAPA Bill (WAPA Bill is required when lease includes utilities)

*Child must be present at time of registration.

Parents with questions or who need more information, may send email tosttregistration@vide.vi.

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