President Boakai, First Lady Dedicate Newly Renovated Gertrude Yancy Public School in Clay Bomi County~ Say, “Liberia's Future is Worth Investing In”
The renovated facilities at the institution include a modern computer laboratory, improved learning facilities, and a mini clinic designed to address the emergency medical needs of students while on campus, as well as a resource center intended to support learning and knowledge development.
During the dedication of the facility, President Boakai lauded the First Lady for the initiative and described the Project as a demonstration of commitment to education and giving back to the community.
He warned that neglecting education could undermine Liberia’s future. “If you want to destroy a country, you don't need missiles; you don't need bombs. Just get the people uneducated, and that will do it for you,” President Boakai said.
The President stressed that Liberia must produce competent professionals and responsible citizens capable of advancing national development, declaring, “Each and every one of the children that come here represent the best of Liberia.”
He also urged the community to protect the refurbished facilities and ensure that the school does not return to its previous condition. “This is not just renovation and sitting down again to come back to the way it was. We’re moving forward,” he said, emphasizing that “Liberia now is on a forward march.”
President Boakai stressed that the Government is committed to developing young people through education, Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), agriculture and other skills-development programs aimed at preparing them for productive lives and future leadership.
For her part, First Lady Kartumu Y. Boakai, a former student of the school, asserted that the renewed facilities would have little meaning if they do not produce educated, disciplined, and responsible Liberians. “These new walls mean nothing if the children are not learning inside them. These desks mean nothing if dreams are not being formed upon them,” she said.
She urged teachers to recognize the potential in every student and encouraged students to read, study and dream beyond their present circumstances. “Teach these children as though one of them will one day lead Liberia. Because one of them just may be the next leader of Liberia,” the Liberian Leader urged.
Reflecting on her own journey from this School to the Executive Mansion, the First Lady said, “I was once a student sitting in this school. Today, by the grace of God, I return as First Lady of the Republic of Liberia. That is what education can do.”
Established in the early 1960s, Gertrude Yancy Public School in Clay, Bomi County, was named after the wife of former Liberian Vice President Allen Yancy. For the First Lady, its renewal represents both a personal homecoming and an investment in generations of Liberian children.
“Gertrude Yancy taught me how to read and write,” the First Lady said, adding, “Today, I pray that this renewed Gertrude Yancy School will teach generations of Liberian children how to dream, how to lead, and how to serve.”
