The Dominica Grammar School (DGS) is a public co-education secondary school in

Roseau Roseau (Dominican Creole: ''Wozo'') is the capital and largest city of Dominica, with a population of 14,725 as of 2011. It is a small and compact urban settlement, in the Saint George parish and surrounded by the Caribbean Sea, the Roseau Ri ...

, Dominica, established in 1893, one of the oldest educational institutions on the island. Contrary to its name, the school no longer functions as a traditional

grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary school ...

, as it has expanded its curriculum beyond its historical scope.

History

The birthplace of the Dominica Grammar School was in "Lagon",

. It was in the building known as No. 66 Queen Mary Street, now occupied by Mr Ashton Piper, Barrister-at-Law and Solicitor. Up to 1877, the plot of land measuring just over , at the corner of what was then Marlborough Street and Grandby Street, was vacant. It was purchased at public auction by a merchant named Henry Hamilton on behalf of his friend Alexander Robinson. The latter started to build on the plot of land in 1878. The story goes that

Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondale (Albert Victor Christian Edward; 8 January 1864 – 14 January 1892) was the eldest child of the Prince and Princess of Wales (later King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra) and grandson of the re ...

, and his younger brother, Prince George, who later became

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...

, visited Dominica in 1879 as naval cadets on HMS ''Bacchante'' and were entertained at the Robinson house which was afterwards named "Clarence Hall", in honor of its royal visitor. The name, however, appears to have fallen into disuse with the passage of time. Robinson probably occupied the building as a dwelling, but when the Government decided to open the Dominica Grammar School, the spacious stone building on Grandby Street was rented for that purpose and opened as a school on January 16, 1893. The property has been in the possession of the Piper family since 1924, when it was purchased by public auction by Augustus Piper. The building is said to have been extensively damaged by fire before it was acquired by Piper. As of January 2021, the Principal of DGS is Edina Darwton, preceded by first-appointed female and longest serving principal Mrs. Alicia Jean-Jacques.

Curriculum

The school offers a range of academic and technical subjects aimed at catering to the increasing demands of its in excess of 800 student population. These include but are not limited to agricultural science, auto mechanics, home economics and management in addition to its traditional natural and social science offerings.

Houses

* Benedict Joseph - Red * Dawbiney - Gold * Dupigny - Green * Skinner - Chocolate Brown The two oldest Houses are Dawbiney and Skinner

The student council

The school currently has a system in which a student council, which includes prefects and form representatives, is led by the headboy and headgirl of the school.

Notable alumni

* Pierre Charles - 6th

Prime Minister of Dominica The prime minister of Dominica is the head of government in the Commonwealth of Dominica. Nominally, the position was created on November 3, 1978 when Dominica gained independence from the United Kingdom. Hitherto, the position existed de facto ...

, attended 1967-70 before transferring to the Saint Mary's Academy. *

Roosevelt Douglas Roosevelt Bernard "Rosie" Douglas (15 October 1941 – 1 October 2000) was a politician and human rights activist from Dominica. He served as Prime Minister of Dominica from February 2000 until his death in office eight months later. Early life R ...

- 5th Prime Minister of Dominica *

Edison James Edison Chenfil James (born October 18, 1943, in Marigot) is a Dominican politician who was the prime minister of Dominica from June 14, 1995, to February 3, 2000, as well as the member of parliament for the Marigot constituency from 1990. He gr ...

- 4th Prime Minister of Dominica *

Philip Potter Philip White Potter (February 6, 1936 – November 7, 2016) was an English singer and actor, best known for his performances in the principal tenor roles of the Savoy Operas with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company from 1961 to 1971. Potter recorded s ...

- leader in the Methodist Church * Edward Scobie - historian and journalist * Liam Sebastien -

Windward Islands french: Îles du Vent , image_name = , image_caption = ''Political'' Windward Islands. Clockwise: Dominica, Martinique, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Grenada. , image_alt = , locator_map = , location = Caribbean Sea No ...

cricketer. * Clarence Seignoret - former President of Dominica * Vernon Shaw - former President of Dominica * Grayson Shillingford - West Indies test cricketer *

Roosevelt Skerrit Roosevelt Skerrit (born 8 June 1972) is a Dominican politician who has been Prime Minister of Dominica since 2004; he has also been the Member of Parliament for the Vieille Case constituency since 2000. Regionally, he has served as the chairman ...

- 7th Prime Minister of Dominica *

Crispin Sorhaindo Crispin Anselm Sorhaindo OBE (23 May 1931 – 10 January 2010) was the fourth President of Dominica. He served from 25 October 1993 until 5 October 1998. Early life Sorhaindo was born in 1931 in the village of Vieille Case. He attended the Vieil ...

- former President of Dominica

References

{{Reflist

External links

Dominica Grammar School website.
Education in Dominica Educational organisations based in Dominica