Eshs Graduates Urged To Build Character; All
Education Minister Sharie de Castro urged the Elmore Stoutt High School Class of 2026 to define success by character and service, not wealth, while celebrating strong academic results. New details from Island Sun confirm that all 10 of the Virgin Islands' top graduating students this year came from ESHS, and Premier Dr the Hon. Natalio Wheatley also praised the school and the Territory's investment in education.
Education Minister Sharie de Castro used her address to the Elmore Stoutt High School (ESHS) Class of 2026 to remind graduates that the most valuable inheritance they receive is not financial, but moral — their character. Speaking at the school’s graduation ceremony at the Multi-Purpose Sports Complex, de Castro told 181 members of the graduating class that while they were leaving with diplomas, they were also inheriting the enduring values established by the school’s namesake, former principal and educator Elmore Stoutt (BVI News; Island Sun). "The greatest inheritances can never be placed in a bank account or written into a will.
They are carried in our character, in our values, in our actions," she said, urging students to embrace Stoutt’s oft‑repeated advice: "Can as much as you can, while you can." De Castro drew on personal experience, recalling that Stoutt had been her principal and a mentor who encouraged her career and telling graduates it was a blessing to witness his legacy in life (BVI News).
De Castro highlighted the Class of 2026’s academic successes as evidence the school’s legacy is thriving. According to BVI News, 134 of ESHS’s 181 graduates earned honours or high honours, and participation in the dual‑enrolment programme reached a record level with 107 students earning college credits while six completed full college enrolment during their final year.
Island Sun similarly reported that more than 100 graduates are leaving with college credits and quoted Principal Vannessa Garraway noting that 73 per cent of the class achieved honours or high honours and that 100 graduates had already earned college credits (BVI News; Island Sun).
Island Sun also reported a standout achievement: all 10 of the Virgin Islands’ top graduating students this year came from ESHS — a fact that underscores the school’s strong performance and culture of excellence (Island Sun). Premier and Minister of Finance Dr the Hon. Natalio Wheatley addressed the ceremony as well, describing education as the cornerstone of the Territory’s development and crediting self‑governance and local leadership for expanding access to secondary education.
He praised ESHS as proof of what the Territory has achieved and encouraged graduates to build on that legacy rather than take it for granted (Island Sun). De Castro singled out male graduates for praise after every young man in the class completed high school, noting the same achievement extended across all public high schools in the Territory this year (BVI News).
She cautioned graduates not to let commencement be their greatest achievement but to treat it as a foundation for a lifetime of learning and service: "Don’t allow graduation to become your greatest achievement. Please allow it only to become your foundation," she said (Island Sun).
The ceremony recognised top performers: Tarina Kenya Kenessa Roberts was named Valedictorian of the Class of 2026, and Kaliq Teshawn Jennings received the Salutatorian honour (Island Sun). Photos from the event were provided by Andre ‘Shadow’ Dawson (BVI News).
Primary source: BVI News