Zion Hill Primary Principal Gives 40 years To What Became His Passion
Lenford Purcell is not one of those who grew up knowing teaching was his calling. It was a call from a principal asking him to fill in at Highgate Continuation School, St Mary, that connected young Purcell with the idea of becoming an educator.
His love for teaching was soon born and then became his passion and the core of his life.
Having completed school at Port Maria High, St Mary, Purcell was content working in his father’s shop selling kerosene and other goods. He loved accounting and considered a career in that field or serving as a pastor.
Then, Joan Hamilton Principal of Highgate Continuation School called him to temporarily fill a teaching slot at the school. He started in August 1982 “and I actually loved it,” he said.
That caused him to go study for his teaching Diploma at Mico Teachers (now University) College. From there he joined Highgate Primary & Junior High School in 1988. There he taught Mathematics. He was at that school for 20 years until the position came up for Principal at Zion Hill Primary, just outside Richmond. He interviewed for the job and got it,
There he has performed as an instructional leader, using his skills at teaching various classes and different subjects, Math in particular, when necessary and keeping an eye on the PEP.
He has been the principal at Zion Hill since 2008 and has to use his various skills as new challenges emerge. Mr Purcell wants a stronger digital base for the school to be able to capture the attention, imagination, and time of the students. Mr Purcell said the children of today are “digitally driven and for the teachers to compete for their attention and time” they also have to possess the tools. He bemoans the fact that the internet reliability at the school is not good to support online learning and provide the assistance teachers would love.
Mr Purcell told The North Coast Times there are still moments of joy for him such as when he hears a child, who was a non-reader only months earlier, now reading. “It gives you joy.” He says he also enjoys when a slow reader is transformed to read at his or her age- or grade-level, through the programmes of the school including its Reading Room.
HARD WORK 
Regarding The Golden Torch Award he received in July, he said: “I feel real good about it knowing that I have been recognized by the JTA. It has been hard work.”
Asked how he felt that so few men were getting into education, Mr Purcell said he was less concerned about the gender of the educators than with their commitment and preparedness. “For me, it’s not about gender but performance,” he said.
The Zion Hill Primary Principal said he has stuck with teaching although, given his other skills and a management degree among his qualifications, he had many other options. “For me, it’s not about the money,” he said.
His dedication to teaching and his students was seen even as we arranged the interview for this feature. It had to be scheduled outside of his class time during the holidays in mid-July where he had mathematics classes for students in grades 3 to 4 and grades 5 to 6. The classes are run four days a week.
Mr Purcell is a member of the Anglican faith and a life member of the St Mary Football Association. His wife, Rose, is also an educator.
