“Liceu” celebrates School Day with gratitude to the past and dynamism to face future challenges

The celebration of the “School Day” was marked today with a symbiosis of emotions, tributes to the merit of the students, with grades above 18 in the previous academic year, and with the expression of the creativity and dynamism of an essential secular institution in the educational panorama of the Region. Still moving moments at tribute to retired teachers and staff, who marked several generations, particularly teachers Francisco Estêvão, Doroteia Teixeira and Elisabete Cró. At 186 years old, the “Liceu” expressed a look of gratitude towards the past but also a great dynamism in preparing “dreaming students” for emerging challenges.

You can access coverage of the ceremony at this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RoqGYJUZ1x0

As in previous years, the ceremony began with the raising of the Green Flag, an Eco-Schools award given through the School's application with the support of the Municipality of Funchal, thanks to the demonstration that the School carried out an environmental education program Of Quality. An event that was also attended by the president of the CMF, Pedro Calado.

After the emotional interpretation by the School Choir, another moment of great significance for everyone was Fernanda Gama's reading of a creative and expressive text by João Abel Torres, both teachers, about the contributions of retired teachers and employees who were, throughout generations, marking the “soul” of the institution and its students, in a continuous and selfless struggle for knowledge, with an invaluable spirit of mission and mutual learning.

The president of the ESJM Executive Council gave a speech that extended gratitude to the entire school community for everyone's contributions, valuing and recognizing the decisive performance of retired staff, namely the fundamental role of teachers and the members who accompanied her on the Executive Council and who have retired, like Francisco Estêvão and Doroteia Teixeira, the excellence of the students in their academic career and the importance of the school continuing on its path of embracing everyone, helping to build successful life projects for “dreaming students”.

With a unifying and optimistic speech regarding the future, Ana Isabel Freitas admitted that she was counting on the support of the Regional Government on this trip: “But if human capital is the most important thing in organizations, with the school being an organization, its leaders have the obligation to promote favorable conditions for teaching and learning. Among them are physical and material conditions. In recent years, with the support of GR, some improvements were made to the coverage of the Main and Annex Building, in some classrooms, and in the Physics Courtyard. We will, of course, continue to count on your support for the restoration of the remaining roof of the Main Building, the painting of interior spaces, as well as the modernization of our laboratories”.

Furthermore, the president of the executive board listed the various challenges that the School has been facing and overcoming successfully, particularly in terms of technological modernization, training generations capable of facing future challenges.

The Regional Secretary for Education, Science and Technology was present at the event, expressing his public recognition for Jaime Moniz's role in training generations and overcoming the challenges that have arisen at different times. As a “son of the house”, where he entered as a student at the age of 12, and later became a director, Jorge Carvalho thanked everyone for their contribution and focused his speech on the importance of the school valuing meritocracy, therefore being the privileged space to train and promote merit. Allied to this principle, the holder of the Education, Science and Technology portfolio guaranteed the School the continuity of GR support and defended, with great emphasis, that it should continue to update itself and respond to society's technological challenges, seeking to create conditions so that performances occur in favorable learning environments, enabling each student to create their life project. Jorge Carvalho also alluded to the unavoidable emergence of artificial intelligence, whose statistics point to its future impacts in more than 40% of professional activities, which deserves adequate preparation from educational institutions to face this paradigm.

One of the highlights of the ceremony was the awarding of diplomas of merit to students who had a brilliant academic career in the previous academic year, in years 10, 11 and 12 (each student with grades above 18), with contributions from Business Groups (Grupo Sousa, Grupo Alberto Oculista, Grupo Porto Editora, Grupo Leya, Transportadora Rodoviária Rodoeste and Clínica Médica das Galerias).

The teachers Francisco Estêvão, Doroteia Teixeira, Elisabete Cró and Marília Spínola were honored, as they are retired. Retired employees were also distinguished, such as Ana Maria Sousa and Raquel Vasconcelos. Fátima Saldanha, psychologist, also retired, having been equally distinguished.

Closing the event, before Madeira de Honra, another rich musical moment with the beautiful voices of Grupo AURA, made up of ESJM students. It is also worth noting that the celebrations also had a sporting dimension, with the School Sports Group organizing football and volleyball games between the “Liceu” and other schools in the Region.

To access the tribute video to retired teachers: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1NqlvL2xi7I3JNP0PQjtrGFRZLd2A9w4a/view?usp=drive_link