Dear Editor,
This letter is not written out of malice or defiance, but out of deep frustration and concern — and above all, a plea for help.
Let me first be clear: the rules at Antigua Girls’ High School are not the problem. Many of them have existed for years, and most parents—including myself—understand and support the need for structure and discipline. The issue lies in the stringent enforcement, the lack of compassion, and the harassment and disrespect being meted out to both parents and students under the current administration.
Since the arrival of the new principal in September, the environment at the school has changed drastically. Rules that had previously been enforced with reason and leniency are now being handled with rigidity and hostility. The tone and approach have shifted from discipline to domination.
The list of enforced restrictions includes:
No powder, lip gloss, or fashion glasses
No beads, bows, or puffs in the hair
No shiny shoes, shoes with bows, or sneakers — only Hoppers brand shoes are allowed
No one disputes the importance of neatness or uniformity. But the way these rules are being imposed—without empathy or consideration for individual circumstances—has created unnecessary hardship.
In my case, my daughter cannot even fit Hoppers shoes due to the shape of her feet. I purchased the best possible alternative I could afford, and only through the kindness of a friend who helped me buy them. Yet, my daughter was sent home repeatedly because the shoes were “not the right brand.” As a single mother struggling financially, with the child’s father still tied up in an unresolved court matter, I simply do not have the means to buy another pair. I explained this to the school, but it fell on deaf ears.
Teachers are also suffering under the same atmosphere. Some who rarely took leave before are now going on two-week sick leave, citing stress and frustration. The school’s internet is reportedly being turned off until late in the day, disrupting lessons and leaving both teachers and students unproductive and anxious.
My daughter’s experiences have been particularly distressing. One teacher asked her to lift an item, and when she explained that she couldn’t because of a spinal injury sustained in a previous bus accident, the teacher punished her by giving her 200 lines to write—not once, but three times. Even though she no longer takes that teacher’s subject, the punishment was upheld. For a child already managing pain and physical limitations, this was nothing short of cruel. It also took away from time she needed for her SBA and CXC work.
Another incident left both of us humiliated. During the Independence celebrations, my daughter—who had been invited to participate—was publicly questioned by the principal in front of others, asking, “Who told you to take part?” The embarrassment and confusion were heartbreaking, especially since I had initially discouraged her from joining. When I went to the school to address it, I was cut off mid-sentence and told to “book an appointment” to come back. As a parent trying to resolve matters respectfully, I was treated with complete disregard.
Beyond these personal experiences, the financial strain placed on parents is another concern. For the 2026 graduation, the package costs $1,250. Students are still being told they must fundraise $20,000, including $7,000 for the church venue. In these difficult times, such demands are unrealistic and insensitive.
To make matters worse, children are being kept in the office all day for uniform infractions—sometimes without access to food or water—missing valuable classes even when SBAs are being submitted. My daughter came home one day with a headache and said she couldn’t take her medication because she wasn’t allowed to eat until she complied with a uniform demand. This is not discipline; this is endangerment.
When I went to the Ministry of Education last week to share my concerns, I met another parent doing the same. We both left feeling unheard and helpless. Many teachers and parents feel the same way, but few speak out because they fear retaliation. Some teachers, I’m told, have resorted to taking sick leave simply to cope with the toxic environment.
I write this letter not just for my child, but for every student and teacher at Antigua Girls’ High School who feels voiceless and overwhelmed. The school has a proud history of excellence, but that legacy is being overshadowed by a culture of fear and disrespect.
To the Ministry of Education, I implore you: please intervene. Visit the school. Speak to the teachers. Speak to the students and parents without administrative presence. Listen to what is truly happening. Discipline should build character, not break spirits. Our daughters deserve better.
As a mother, I want my child to learn, to grow, and to thrive in an environment that values her mind and her well-being. What is happening now is not education—it is oppression wrapped in the name of order.
Please, help us restore the Antigua Girls’ High School to what it once was: a place of dignity, compassion, and learning.
Sincerely,
A Concerned Parent
$7,000.00 payment to the church for graduation? ma mooma,🤦🏾 that’s not a church that’s a building.
Just yesterday I had this conversation with someone. May schools now are being run like prisons by persons who like the fact that they are now in power and can do as they please. They will never understand that the frustrations can and will hamper the learning ability of many students. I can’t see what the problem is if someone wears an all black Nike or a all black chiney shoes to school. These children need not to be worrying about what punishments will be dealt out if they don’t do this and that first thing every morning. HOW DE HELL DEM GO LEARN PROPERLY IF EVERYTHING ELSE IS CLOUDING THEIR MINDS?
I am a student of the school, and I can say that it is very stressful to go there knowing that power will be abused there….I’m tired man!
lol
As a student of said school, you cannot understand how touched I am that someone spoke out, and not just on my behalf but my mother’s to.
The hostility in that school is unnerving and down right unnecessary and when students complain (respectfully), we are pushed to the side and told that our opinions does not matter.
They must not realize that the financial struggle of our parents lands on us too because we see it even when they try to shield us.
My mother is also a single parent and she fights to give my siblings and I a comfortable life, so how can persons that live in almost the same income bracket with children of their own, display such a lack of empathy.
I have walked in on students crying in offices, because mommy and daddy can’ t afford the shoe, or to buy the hundred dollar uniform till they get paid and no one cares.
I agree with everything that this parent has to say, and as a student I hope that a change will be made.
What kind of stupidity you a spread in ya so? This is a PUBLIC school for education not a dictatorship. It has to be reasonable for it to be plausible because people from all types of backgrounds attend there. What effect does a puff or a brand on shoes have on education? You’re just looking for reason to be tearing these girls down from their self esteem to their performance. It’s worthless.
This is exactly the kind of letter that should make officials move quickly. These girls deserve a safe and supportive environment to learn in
It is not only morale that is “dropping” in the school system across Antigua and Barbuda! What is seriously dropping in our schools is RESPECT for institutional norms, rules and regulations by students and teachers alike, aided and abetter by parents who just don’t know any better, but who arm themselves with feelings of entitlement. No body will deny the schools like the AGHS has lost a great deal of respect from the general public and especially from its alumni. Just witness the conduct of these so-called “ladies” in blue! Loud, aggressive, disrespectful, unmannerly, common. 900 students cannot and should not be allowed and encouraged to enforce their personal (non-) standards on a School! Children come from a variety of backgrounds and should not therefore be encouraged to shape and define the schools’ traditionally respected standards. We keep lowering the bar to accommodate our “entitled” students especially in the public school system. No wonder that such schools’ output and general performance continue to lag way behind those schools not afraid to insist on standards.
You seem to have a prejudice against the Antigua Girls High School and you’re clearly missing the point and bringing in your irrelevant comments when there are more important matters at hand. The new headmistress at the school has added new rules such as no puffs and no shiny shoes which is damaging the financial stability of parents and have no correlation to education. Additionally, the cost for graduation was $700 last year. There is no reason for this new teacher to increase the price to $1250 dollars with $20,000 for funding. Anyone who looks at the letter logically can see that this new headmistress is bringing a sense of anxiety and depression to the Antigua Girls High School and it’s extremely saddening to witness as an old girl.
1000% in agreement!!! You go to school to learn, not for no dyam fashion show!!! The rules are there to keep the little “feel they special” girls in check. When u leave the school, you can do what ever you choose, but once you are IN THE PEOPLE SCHOOL do what you are told and bit what tik tok tell you!!! The first part of the letter about puffs is not true
What kind of stupidity you a spread in ya so? This is a PUBLIC school for education not a dictatorship. It has to be reasonable for it to be plausible because people from all types of backgrounds attend there. What effect does a puff or a brand on shoes have on education? You’re just looking for reason to be tearing these girls down from their self esteem to their performance. It’s worthless. There is no reason for these girls to be limited from attending school for doing age appropriate beautification. They are all developing and if you take the time out of their day to have them in school like prison then when will they socially develop?
Thank you for writing this. I’m a teacher at another school, and I can confirm morale across the education system is dropping because of how leadership is handling things.
We appreciate your honesty and frankness
The graduation cost alone is ridiculous! $1,250 plus fundraising? That’s not realistic for most families right now.
It is even more ridiculous if you realize that the price was never that high and fundraising was optional (the graduation committee and students) were encouraged but not forced to raise funds for graduation and prom
I am so glad someone finally spoke out. My daughter also goes to AGHS and the atmosphere has changed completely. Children are afraid to even express themselves.
It is crazy that most parents are contemplating moving their child. If you reach after 8 there a staff sitting talking names which is not a prob, but when there is 10 to 15 plus students waiting then you reach class even later than you already are. Not even a 2 to 5 mins grace period. Dont talk about the In House Suspension….
When I went to AGHS in 2009 -2014, one of the first things I did was tell my sisters to not follow me there. The ridiculous enforcement of rules without regard for circumstance and prioritizing rules over education were always issues that drove me insane and left me lacking any desire to perform.
Rules are important, yes, but the system the school has enforced only left the young women there mentally scarred and lacking in support where mattered, their education. They care more about bows and hoppers than learning, They were more concerned with ensuring you were at House prayers and general assemblies than ensuring there were teachers for the subjects they offered. AGHS is far from being the best school on the island. Why should the shine of shoes or hair bows matter? University and workplaces are hardly so strict. Are they training these young women for prison?
Where I suffered and struggled to succeed after being a model student growing up with great potential, my sisters who went to another institution despite qualifying to go to AGHS now have accolades that remain records that left others in awe, as their school supported them instead of demeaned them and tore them down in the name of enforcing arbitrary rules. They never had teachers reminding them constantly at General Assemblies they are now small fish in a big pond, and it showed. They never had teachers shame them for having highlights while doing CXC exams when you’re almost out the door, and they never had to put up with taking Theatre Arts when they were promised an Economics teacher, or not have a Physics teacher for months at a time, or to depend on the charity of a peer’s sibling who left their job to come teach Chemistry since the school failed to find a replacement for a retiring teacher in the middle of the term.
Rules are important, but they should never be used to deny a child access to education.
As a student of said school is cannot express my gratitude that someone spoke out on our parent’s, and subsequently our behalf.
The hostility that is in the school right now is not suited for a work environment and this level of ‘strictness’ Is unnerving and simply unnecessary.
As a child of a single parent I see the struggle that comes along with her trying to give us a comfortable life, and not to deal with this new added pressure without mercy.
When students try to explain their situation (respectfully) we are met with no empathy or care.
We see teachers that try to help but know that they can’t do much because their higher-ups don’t make it possible.
I can count on both my hands how may time i have walked into the office as seen students crying because mommy or daddy don’t get paid until month end.
It’s truly heartbreaking to see students who truly don’t have the means, being subjected to this.
Thank you for speaking out on our behalf.
My niece has been complaining about similar issues. The constant policing over small things is stressing these girls out. Schools should uplift, not intimidate.
This letter brought me to tears. We all want our girls to be strong and respectful, but not broken down emotionally. The system needs balance
Is it that same principal from JSS.?
Well if it is. Min of education should realize the problem and act fast before our girls start collapsing en mass under undue stress. Leading the public to sight jumby possession.
Mr Clare Browne , you are a man of reason and honor and we await your opinion and the matter.
It is amazing that we are ready to judge without hearing the full story. I am very sorry that this parent has gone through any hardship however I also know that being in any managerial position is not easy. Are we certain that the current leadership is given a fair chance? Or are persons, including parents, teachers and students, simply acting based on what they have heard? Or is it the present leadership is being compared to those who have gone before?
None of us should be so ready to judge anyone not knowing the full story. I have seen disgruntled parents create false narratives, and escalate situations to the point that it really isn’t necessary…and I have seen unfairness in certain instances, nonetheless we should never be so quick to judge because I am certain there are those who applaud the current leadership for her approach among other things.
That’s my take on the matter.
If u can’t manage being under the pressure of managing so much girls don’t do it the new spirit most of them came in with this term just to be told that passing is WAY harder don’t do it I get the whole prison rules but the grades come on man then she wanna give them the whole this is for the betterment of you like come on man that’s stupid like has been so much harder since she came with her bs like we don’t think of people mental health and so
@let’s be real
I empathize and understand your thought process and approach to this situation as I am also not one that’s quick to Judge and pass quick judgement on matters like this.
However, with this same breath I can personally attest to the validity of everything that has been stated in this letter as I was their and had an unfortunate experience with the principal of the AGHS also furthermore what this parent has cited are personal experiences that their daughter has gone through but with what I’ve seen firsthand their letter does not even begin to scratch the surface of the awful situations that the Students, Teachers and Parents are being disrespected by this administration.
I went through the same with my daughter and the shoe issue. These things may sound small to some people, but to struggling parents, they’re big.
So sad 😔 I hope the Ministry of Education and the powers that be way in on what’s happening in that institution. It could leave an impact on the children. MRS.BEAZER. your rigidity it’s not speaking volume.
You all need to come together and stand firm. Go as a group to the Minister of Education. Consider a coordinated walkout or designated days when no one attends school. Hire a lawyer who is willing to take on the school and the Ministry of Education for discrimination—if everyone contributes, the cost becomes minimal. Join the PTA if one exists; if not, establish one. Build strength, break the cycle, and teach your daughters—through your actions—how to stand up for themselves.
Thank you, Concerned Parent, for your courage. Many of us share your pain but fear backlash. I really hope the Ministry takes this seriously.
First and foremost let’s think of the students comfort!! Reading this felt like a bullet to the back of my head… you mean to tell me that students have to stick to one shoes? You cannot tell a child what they are comfortable in. If they want to wear sneakers then that’s their choices that’s what most girls prefer, that’s what most girls find fitting and comfortable for them. In other hands. Not everyone has the energy and time to be doing hair. Especially when it comes to hair type! You can’t tell a person not to do a puff in their hair. Now, Powder. Excuse me? I hope the ministry step in and step down. Either Ms. Beazer is out or she stick to the rules that was placed their before. You don’t come and start making changes and making students uncomfortable. You never heard any complains on Ms. Croft but here we are…….
We know Antigua.news as a place that publishes and we receive results! I pray this letter bring some level of results and ease to the school! Our children should not feel like they are in prison
Well it seems like everyone hate that lady. But there is alot of wrong things at that school Lesbians raining there. The kind of american culture where students bully each other, intimidation…I had to remove my child from there…Scary stuff…I cant even mention all of it…Maybe this woman is trying to bring some order to the whole thing
This letter truly resonates with me. Reading about the experiences of this parent and her daughter is both heartbreaking and alarming. Schools are supposed to be safe spaces for learning, growth, and emotional development, not places where children fear humiliation or punishment over things they cannot control. The strict enforcement of arbitrary rules, like shoe brands or hairstyles, may seem minor to some, but for struggling families, these are real sources of stress and anxiety. Punishing a child for a medical limitation or for being unable to comply with unrealistic uniform standards is not discipline, it’s cruelty