Wayne Edwards had to do everything from organising breakfasts to getting up in the middle of the night to make sure sick children are taken to hospital in one of his previous teaching roles.

So it is little wonder that working at Bermuda Institute feels like a vacation by comparison.

But any students who are looking forward to an easy life after Mr Edwards took over as principal from the long-serving Lois Tucker should think again as he has already laid out plans for an expanded curriculum, earlier college preparation and further community involvement.

Mr Edwards became the institute’s 19th principal this month.

It is the latest step in a career for the Jamaican, which has included teaching around the Caribbean for 12 years and working as a principal for Union Springs Academy in New York and Waldrick Seventh-day Adventist School in New Jersey.

Recalling his previous job at Waldrick, Mr Edwards told The Royal Gazette: “We had school 24/7, so I was not only in charge of a day school that ended at three or four in the afternoon. School continued.

“So as an administrator and as a team there we had to be parents, we had to be teachers — we had to do everything for these kids including when to send them to bed, when to wake them up for breakfast, when to do everything.

“And so coming here was a vacation. I didn’t have to get a call at 2am to say that this child is sick and he needs a doctor, and then trying to find out who’s going to substitute or which teacher would need to go to the hospital.”

Since arriving at Bermuda Institute as a teacher in 2013, Mr Edwards has seen to the repainting of the school, installation of flagpoles to fly the church flags and development of a pre-K programme for young children to start in August.

According to Mr Edwards, much of his future efforts will be a continuation of the work laid down over 14 years by Dr Tucker, while imparting his own vision as best as he can.

He said: “She served her time, she did what she had to do, she took the school to another level, and I intend to do the same.”

Mr Edwards said he hopes to bring leadership and new ideas that will put the institute above and beyond the island’s standards.

“When you complain you need to make sure that you can complain to someone who can do something about it. I felt that I could do something about making a difference, and hence I went further into administration.

“Being in the classroom is good, but I think I can be more effective as an administrator.”

As the new principal, Mr Edwards aims to focus on “moving forward” as a school and making sure that students receive a well-rounded education. In particular, he plans to expand the curriculum to include more technology courses and improving on the balance of academics and skill sets.

He also hopes to start college preparation as early as S10 by focusing on SAT/ACT preparation and better access to scholarship funds.

Outside of academic progress, he hopes to get the school deeply involved with the community and churches in hopes to teach upcoming students good citizenship and faith-building. A jump-start to this will be a health fair on October 1 in the spirit of Cancer Awareness Month.

“We are preparing them to be citizens in this world, whether they serve here on this island or they go elsewhere,” Mr Edwards said.

“Our students will be out there serving; they must be community-minded and they must have the spirit of volunteerism in them.”