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Berkeley Institute honours its 100 graduates of 2008

Students listen to Head Boy Jeremy Sunderaraj give the Salutatory Address. Berkeley Senior School graduated over one hundred students at the Heritage Worship Centre, Dundonald Street Monday. Some not only graduated but have already achieved college credits.

The Berkeley Institute has scored a century — 100 students have graduated from the school this year.

And many of the school leavers celebrating gaining their Bermuda School Certificate (BSC) have secured places at universities overseas.

Principal Michelle Simmons told The Royal Gazette: "We are very pleased with the progress we are making at Berkeley in raising standards overall."

Mrs. Simmons told the graduates — 13 of whom gained honours — and their teachers and families at a ceremony last month that they had achieved through "collaboration, cooperation, [and] personal commitment to hard work".

She said many graduates had taken GCSEs as well as the BSC, with some sitting AS Level Spanish and also earning Bermuda College credits.

"This is a clear indication of the focus we have on pushing our students to achieve at the highest level," she said.

Sixty two percent of the school's graduates will continue their education at Bermuda College with 25 heading abroad to the US, Canada and England to study and others entering the workforce.

The top two students for 2008 were valedictorian Sherrita Arorash and salutatorian Jeremy Sunderaraj.

Sherrita, 18, from Sandys, achieved triple honours with a grade-point average of 3.83 out of four and an average mark of almost 90 percent.

On top of her BSC and GCSEs, the 18-year-old, from Sandys, gained an A in actuarial science at Bermuda College.

She told this newspaper: "I do feel very proud. I have always enjoyed Berkeley — I was two years at the old school and two years at the new school."

The teenager has won three scholarships to study actuarial science at St. John's University in New York — $15,000 from mentors KPMG, $12,000 from St. John's and $24,000 from the PartnerRe/Herbert Haag Fund.

Mrs. Simmons said: "She is an outstanding scholar."

Jeremy achieved a grade-point average of 3.58 out of four and an average mark of almost 90 percent. "I did pretty much okay," said the former head boy.

The 17-year-old, from Paget, has set his sights on becoming a doctor and will head to the University of Bridgeport in Connecticut in August to major in pre-med.

There were 65 girls and 35 boys in this year's graduating class.

Mrs. Simmons said the year began with 124 students on the BSC course so the graduation rate was almost 81 percent.

She compared that with last year when 66 out of 77 who started the S4 year — or more than 85 percent — graduated.

"We are delighted to have 100 graduates in the BSC programme," said Mrs. Simmons. "The majority of the 24 students who did not meet the academic requirement for graduation have already enrolled in summer school to complete one or two requirements.

"There will be more graduates added to the group once summer school concludes in August."

A Ministry of Education spokesman would not confirm the graduation rate.

"As normal, the Minister at a later time will provide a statement that addresses the graduation figures," he said.

CedarBridge Academy principal Kalmar Richards did not respond to a request for information on the school's 2008 graduates and nor did the Ministry