As we set off for our third school year at Suubi Secondary & Vocational College, the past 2 weeks has seen students settling in for 2017. We are very excited to have 50 new Senior 1 students joining our Senior 2 and 3 cohort. We wish them well as they begin, not only their secondary schooling, but also their journey through the unique style of education that SSVC offers. Like other classes before them, the Senior 1 class will combine their academic education with learning a variety of vocational skills that can be used as a means to support themselves in future.

The new Senior 1 students are happy to be joining their SSVC peers to start their secondary education.

Although they are yet to receive their uniforms, the Senior 1 students already feel very much a part of SSVC. They are working hard in their academic classes and were happy to be introduced to microscopes, that had recently been delivered from Australia, during their biology class.

But the Senior 1s won't be waiting long for their uniforms - Senior students, who have been learning tailoring and knitting skills as part of their vocational studies in previous years, are currently busy making them. How exciting!
While all three class levels will undertake both academic and vocational studies throughout this year, our Senior 3 students will focus more on their academic subjects as they head towards their 'O' level examinations. Having reached the point where they have had to make subject selections, that will support their chosen career paths, they will need to spend more time studying their books this year.

Academic subjects become more intensive as students move in to Senior 3 level.
We were also thrilled to see our new girls dormitory completed in time for the start of the school year. As we had envisaged, this has enabled students from further away to join SSVC in 2017. We now have students staying in the dorm from villages such as Kyssonko, Kiwangala, Nakawanga and Kinoni. We are especially happy to see one of our Smiling heARTs special needs students, from last years Kakunyu group, now being able to stay in the new dormitory so she too can attend SSVC. How wonderful to realise that through the sale of art pieces, that Namayanja Justine learnt to produce last year, she is now able to pay for her own secondary education!

The addition of the new dormitory, beside the vocational training hall, certainly fits in well with the impressive structures in the SSVC compound .

Head master, Walugembe Robert, (C) and the dormitory matron, Namujju ,(far right) were happy to help the girls settle in to the new dormitory.

The girls busily worked together to set up their mattresses and mosquito nets inside.

The smile on Namayanja Justine's face shows she is very happy to be staying in the dormitory and studying at SSVC. When she first become part of our Smiling heARTs group last year she very rarely smiled. Being involved in the project has very obviously had a profound impact on her.

With even more students indicating they wish to move in to the new dormitory, the senior boys are currently busy making additional bunks during their welding classes.
What a wonderful scenario that the skills senior students have learnt during their previous years of vocational training are now being utilised. Throughout the construction of the dormitory, brick laying and welding students were involved in the actual construction and now we are seeing the tailoring, knitting and welding students also making uniforms and bunks. Previously these jobs would have needed to be outsourced but instead students are now gaining practical real life experience and being paid for their work. This of course not only gives them enormous pride, it will also enable them help pay for their own education. This is a perfect outcome and certainly lives up to the schools motto of a meaningful education!
Our huge thanks goes to everyone that has helped us reach this point; it takes teamwork and hard work from many, many people and we are enormously grateful to each and every one of you. We are sure 2017 is going to be yet another step forward for Suubi Secondary & Vocational College and we look forward to keeping you up to date as we move on.
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