JAMAICANS ARE PASSIONATE about everything. Politics, sports, you name it. We can also be quite fanatical about our alma mater.
Of course, Kingston College old boys sometimes behave as if they have a monopoly on this passion. I heard that an Air Jamaica pilot was almost fired for trying to put the school's 'fortis' bumper sticker on Mr. Butch's plane. But you can't blame him. All Jamaicans who went to high school feel that they attended the best high school on the island. Well, I attended Excelsior, so I know I went to the best high school on the planet!
Feel free to disagree. But no other secondary education institution in this country has graduated more famous (and infamous) people than Excelsior! Just name any field of endeavour and you will find Excelsiorians listed among the best.
EXCELSIORIANS IN ALL WALKS OF LIFE
Excelsior has produced some of Jamaica's top doctors, lawyers, engineers, academics and more. In sports, we proudly lay claim to cricket's legendary Courtney Walsh, current West Indies batsman Chris Gayle and former Test players Uton Dowe, Patrick Patterson (via Happy Grove & Wolmer's) and Rudolph Cohen, who toured with Frank Worrell's WI team. In football, we have a member of the historic World Cup qualifying team, Walter Boyd.
In radio and television we can brag about stalwarts like Erica Allen, Radcliffe Butler, the award winning Cliff Hughes, and CVM's young Candice Buchanan.
In the world of fashion we have the trail-blazing Althea Laing and international super model Jaunel McKenzie.
In arts and culture our list is endless: cultural icon and national treasure, The Hon. Louise Bennett-Coverley, renowned opera singer Sir Willard White, world famous choreographer Garth Fagan, multi-award winning actress Leonie Forbes, playwright Stafford Ashani, actress and social worker Claudette Pious, and the original Jamaican film star Carl Bradshaw.
Excelsiorians are parliamentarians too. Check Justice Minister A. J. Nicholson, Technology Minister Phillip Paulwell, and Housing and Water Minister Donald Buchanan. In legal affairs we have the esteemed Rattrays, Earl Witter, and Antonnette Haughton-Cardenas (by way of St. Hugh's) and Ian Randle in publishing, and ... OK, I'll stop now!
FIRST TO ADMIT DREADLOCKS
Back in the day, many persons left their big name, upper-crust high schools to do sixth form at Excelsior, either because Excelsior had more 'vibes' or because their snobbish school wouldn't have them.
Excelsior discouraged any form of segregation and cultivated an ethos of respect for equality and human rights. Did you know that Excelsior was the first Jamaican high school to admit a dreadlocked student? We could list many other significant firsts but time and space do not permit.
I recently had cause to reflect on this rich legacy, when I participated in activities to mark the 75th anniversary of that great institution. Staff, students and alumni gathered at Mountain View Avenue to pay tribute to founding father, the Honourable Dr. Aston Wesley Powell, and I was proud to be numbered among them. Yes, all Jamaican schools have some claim to fame. But when others brag about their alma mater, I simply remind them that there are high schools and high schools; but the word Excelsior means 'yet higher.'
Happy 75th anniversary, Excelsior!
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