Dominica highlights top CXC Students, announces major education reforms

Dominica: The Ministry of Education announced the names of the high-performing students in the 2025 Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) results. They also highlighted major reforms which are set to transform Dominica’s education system in the new academic year. 

This announcement was made at a press conference by the Education Ministry on Monday, August 25, 2025. Minister for Education, Human Resource Planning, Vocational Training and National Excellence, Octavia Alfred; Chief Education Officer, Dr Jeffrey Blair; CXC Local Registrar, Magaly Celestine; Senior Education Officer for Secondary Schools, Quinn Thomas and other education senior officials were in attendance.

The principals of secondary schools, staff of secondary schools, secondary school students were also present along with the parents of the winning students, media personnel and all the participants attending the conference online.

During the press briefing, the Ministry of Education of Dominica released the results of CCSLC, CSEC, CBQ, and KIT examinations. 

The Chief Education Minister Jeffrey Blair said, “In my capacity as Chief Education Officer, I guess it's within my role to share with the public the performance of our schools and more specifically, our students.”

Outstanding CXC Performance

• Anya John-Baptiste (Casabó Secondary School) - 10 First Prizes
• Princess George (Casabó Secondary School) - 9 First Prizes
• Watson Packet (Fairchild Secondary School) - 9 First Prizes
• Rhea Sanville (Casabó Secondary School) - 8 First Prizes
• Katiana Gilbert (Casabó Secondary School) - 8 First Prizes
• Kenelia S. Barron (Academic School of Learning) - 13 Grade One awards, making her one of the islands’ best achiever 

Other notable students included Giovanna Joseph from Wesley High School (7 ones), Leon Telliman of Northeast Comprehensive (7 ones) and Ajadi Maxwell from Oriel Academy (9 ones).

Dr Blair said that the results show the excellence of their students in most areas during the examinations, and a slight increase of 1% has been recorded in their overall percentage as compared to last year. 

“Additionally, our students have maintained above average performance, and that's above average, above the average of the regional level this year, just as we did last year, and I think, to my recollection, the year before as well. So we are indeed very proud of our students, and we are proud of them specifically for making Dominica proud,” further added Blair.

Education Reform for 2025–2026

Minister for Education Octavia Alfred announced major reforms which will take effect from September 2025, focusing on total student development. These include:- 

• Mandatory Community Service: All students in this program will do community service each school year to foster civic duty and empathy.
• Health and Nutrition Initiatives: School nutrition policies will see improvements which include removal of sugary drinks and “sweetie shops” from campuses. Schools will reintroduce “Fruit Day” and review school lunch menus to include healthier options.
• Cultural and Social Skills Development: A new handbook which will guide schools in assemblies, clubs, arts showcases (VPA days) and financial literacy programs.
• Civics Curriculum: All primary schools will introduce civics education to inculcate patriotism and social values.
• Standardized Timetables: Primary schools will set a uniform timetable, ensuring core subjects are covered in the morning and creative / skill based activities in the afternoons.
• Curriculum and Textbook Alignment: Textbook access will be improved, with many books provided and stored at schools to reduce costs and lighten student backpacks.

Infrastructure and CAPE Expansion

The Dominica Grammar School will re-open for the new school term on September 8, 2025, following structural assessment and improvements to the classrooms, labs and general facilities. The students will occupy Blocks A, B, and the very recently finished Block C.

In the case of Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE), officials have confirmed that Dominica is in the process of fully integrating into the national education system. Also at present, an external consultant is looking at Dominica State College’s structure to put in place ways to increase the number of CAPE programs especially in technology and vocational fields.