Gambia Methodist Academy student Suwado Jammeh achieved a remarkable feat by earning an A1 in every subject this year in the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE). WASSCE is the college entrance examination students in Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone take.

The WASSCE tests four core subjects: English, mathematics, integrated science, social studies, and up to five elective subjects. Suwado tested in Civic Education, English language, Mathematics, Further Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Geography, and French.

Her exceptional performance earned her a certificate of excellence and a cash award from Trust Bank Ltd. Additionally, the West African Examinations Council and her school, Gambia Methodist Academy, recognized her for having the best results in the entire country.

The Port of Harlem Gambian Education Partnership (POHGEP), fully funded by Port of Harlem magazine readers and followers, provides some support to the Methodist Special School (for challenged children) and its sister school, Gambia Methodist Academy.

Gambia Methodist Academy is celebrating 30 years in service. POHGEP bought an advertisement in their celebration booklet celebrating their birthday and POHGEP’s president Wayne Young’s Methodist heritage via his paternal grandmother Odessa Young Bell Lomack and great-grandmother Josephine Duty Young Prowell of Forrest City, Arkansas.

The advertisement features a picture of both women. POHGEP readers also provide the school with an allotment of soap annually produced by the Baobab Youth Development Association of Nema Kunku, The Gambia, and new and gently used books from the United States.

“I am extremely excited that we were entrusted with a potentially outstanding student for six years. We groomed her academically and morally, and in the end, she came out tops. As a staff, we worked as conscientiously as we should, and our efforts paid off,” said Principal Hardy via WhatsApp. “Give us a good, hard-working student, and we will give you a star in the end,” she added.

In Gambia, it is not unusual for Muslims to attend Christian schools and vice versa. “This is the beauty of the Gambia. Many of us went to St. Augustine’s, St. Joseph’s, and Gambia High Schools, which are Roman Catholic and Methodist High Schools. Muslims celebrate Christmas and Easter, and Christians celebrate our Muslim feasts. Religious tolerance and celebrating each other’s faith are hallmarks of The Gambia. I hope and pray that the current wave of global extremism does not manifest in our Smiling Coast of Africa,” commented Port of Harlem Facebook friend Lare Sisay.

Suwado’s talents extend beyond the classroom. She was also an accomplished athlete, served as head girl, and actively participated in her school’s drama and STEM clubs, with dreams of becoming a medical doctor.