So what started in 2013 is about to be completed.  The debate of if Bonaire campus closing is finally here.  SJSM has confirmed it from their website.  At least students now don't have to worry about the mistreatments by the locals.  During my stay there, the Bonaire locals gave me a hard time even when I did follow their rules.  Of course not all locals were like that, there are few from the rest that were very polite and nice.

This is bad news for the Bonaire economy but good news for St. Vincent, as the students bring in about $10 million a year as I heard when I was a student there.  I'm sure it's more now with the new campus on St. Vincent and expanded class size.

SJSM St. Vincent has a sole campus built from ground up.  As of 2015, the school will be 15 years old clearing its way to apply for California whenever they apply for it.

Some students gave me information that a third campus will be opening on the island of Saint Vincent. It'll be kind of weird, that a school's name "Saint James" will be on the island of Saint Vincent, go figure.

Updated February 5th, 2014
Saint James School of Medicine St. Vincent Announcement Documentation (PDF)

Saint Vincent already has three medical schools there: All Saints University College of Medicine, American University of St. Vincent School of Medicine, and Trinity School of Medicine. Now our school is opening it's third campus there.

One of the negative things about moving a campus is that it looses it's years of operations, which contributes in it's accreditation. The more the years a school runs in the same location the better. By opening a third campus on another island after 14 years of operation, it looks like Saint James is expanding at a rapid pace. I just hope Saint James School of Medicine can get NY and FL since they will still be able to keep the accreditation years from Bonaire.

Here is the article that's published regarding the 3rd campus:

Fourth medical school coming soon to St Vincent
Published on October 19, 2013
KINGSTOWN, St Vincent -- Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves has announced that a fourth medical school is expected to begin operations in St Vincent and the Grenadines by next year. The prime minister made the announcement during a news conference. He said that the St James School of Medicine is looking at the possibility of starting operations in the South Leeward area. The prime minister also said that the St James Medical School has indicated that it will start with about sixty students, and this will increase to about two hundred within two to three years. Gonsalves noted that there are now over 400 medical students pursuing studies in St Vincent.

You can confirm it by going to the IMED website and it shows that accreditation years starting from 2000. So it looks like SJSM gets to keep the accreditation years. Also, another student said he will be starting on Summer 2014 so Bonaire campus will remain open but it will be a sub-campus of the 3rd campus; it looks like Bonaire economy is saved. The MPs of Bonaire's parliament was trying to stop Saint James from leaving anyways.

If you have anything to say, then please use the comment box below.

I found this on the web, and I thought I'd share this. It's a class video of one of the classes from SJSM Bonaire. Whoever made this video did a good job.

I'm sure the scenery from this video will bring back memories for those who attended the Bonaire campus.

This relates to the recent events of Bonaire campus becoming the subcampus of Anguilla. Saint James School of Medicine Bonaire is scheduled to be completely closed in December 2014 and operations to be continued in Anguilla after December 2014. The question is, should I stick with SJSM or should I transfer out?

You have to consider several things and everyone's situation is different. First think about how far you are in your MD. If you are in basic sciences on the island or in AICM and still haven't registered with the ECFMG then you have the option of transferring out without any problems.

For those who are not familiar with the ECFMG, it is the US medical organization you need to register with in order to take your USMLE tests since you go to a non-US medical school. When you register with the ECFMG, you basically tell them who are and what school you started medical school with. After registering with the ECFMG, they will know everything after you make any changes you make afterwards.

If you are in AICM 5th semester and you didn't pay for the 6th semester or above, and you didn't register with the ECFMG yet, then you have an option to transfer.

However, for us clinical clerkship students, we have to finish what we started because we already paid the majority of the tuition. Also we already took USMLE Step 1 and some of us are already registered for USMLE Step 2 CK or CS or both so, there's no point in transferring. Transferring after all we did will only make things more complicated with the SJSM, ECFMG, and with residency.

Since our transcript will show that we transferred, it will have a minimal impact from what I was told. The reason is we are transferring from one campus to another, yet we are still with the same school. Therefore, we still have one transcript.

So that's my two cents about transferring. So, if you transfer, make sure you look at all your options and angles before doing so.

The title says it all. Keep one thing in mind, this post is regarded to the Bonaire island only. I never been to Anguilla campus so I don't know how the teachers there are like. From the Bonaire campus, multiple students will tell you that the teachers put them down. The teachers are not encouraging. They pick and choose people to favor who get good grades, but those students who get good grades, are the ones who are financially secure. Those students take the teachers out to eat or party or I don't know.

I experienced demoralization on the island when the teachers told other students that I will never pass the USMLE Step 1, and yet Lord behold, I did pass with a score above the national average. It's unfortunate that these teachers think they can say whatever they want and get away with it. 

I have nothing against them, as they seem as if they were not taught the etiquettes of being a good teacher. Most of them come from India and other neighboring countries so it's understandable why they would say these things. These teachers are our competition also, some are also waiting to get residency in the United States. I don't feel bad about the negative things they say, because us students have an advantage; we are US and Canadian citizens or permanent residents, which gives us an edge. Residency programs don't want to deal with J1 or H1 visa, plus they know that we will not leave US to go back to India after completing residency. Residency programs know that it's a better investment to hire a US/Canadian citizen because the chances of us staying and serving in US is high.

So that's my two cents. And this doesn't apply to teachers only; it applies to anyone and everyone who puts you down and stays you will never make it. Have faith in God, and stay focused and you will make it.

Well, after all the run around of rumors we finally get the truth. The Bonaire campus for Saint James School of Medicine is now closed. I called up some sources to find out why this was the case and it started years ago; it was all about money. You would think SJSM would gain more accreditation because it’s in it’s second decade and the number of students getting residencies are increasing but no. Apparently from what I found out, the Dutch government wanted a percentage of the profits from SJSM in order for the school to run in Bonaire. This happened after the Dutch started to move in, because according to them the students were causing trouble to the local Bonarians. Good riddance to the locals because the local Bonarians used to rob from the students and now they won’t have that $10+ million per year from students. When I was in Bonaire the locals treated me badly and they gave me such a hard time because I was a foreigner. They would also overcharge me in Subway multiple times and I couldn’t say much. Now those Bonarians will not have laptops to steal from students or their cars.

Anguilla Campus Extension for Bonaire Students

A source from Anguilla said that construction, and yes you read it right, construction of a new campus is currently going on for the Bonaire students who are coming in. The construction for the Bonaire students are being done on steroids; he said he has never seen something being done like this so fast by SJSM. Also, new computers and new network systems are being installed and upgraded for the big change.

The new building will only house the Bonaire students and teachers. While the Anguilla students will be in a separate building. Unfortunately, Bonaire students are loud, rowdy, and aggressive compared to the Anguilla students. So this is going to be a wacky mix.

Transfer Status

Apparently all of us Bonaire graduates in clinical clerkship have our transcripts with the Anguilla location. I spoke with someone and he said that since we are not transferring schools there would not be transfer status on the transcript. The only way to see the transfer status would be to see it on ECFMG papers, which is unlikely done by the residency program directors. So when you submit your transcript it should just say Anguilla. However, I could be wrong so take this information with a grain of salt.

Anguilla Accreditation

If you hear anything about Anguilla campus closing down in January from someone, especially from a student from another school, just take that with grain of salt also. SJSM is having a new building built for the incoming students, and building a new building on those islands costs a lot of money. On top of that, the Anguilla locals favor the students and they want the students to stay unlike the Bonaire locals, according to and Anguilla source.

There has been a lot of talk about the status of the St. James School of Medicine’s survival. Let me make it clear to you that the school is not shutting down, nor is it in the process of shutting down.  Readers of this site questioned what was happening and I had no answer to give them because I didn't know anything.  But now I do know what's happening and I will lay it out.

Right now, the accreditation of the Bonaire campus is extended for another 5 years supposedly. Apparently, the Bonaire campus education quality must be in parallel with Dutch education standards and that's where the problem started.  So, SJSM has to improve the quality of education.

I’m not going to sugarcoat anything, the ground reality is if Bonaire ever lost the Dutch accreditation then Bonaire campus will close and the SJSM accreditation will be dependent on the Anguilla campus. Unfortunately, for the Bonaire students who already registered with the ECFMG for USMLE Step 1, SJSM will mostly likely transfer everything from the Anguilla campus and it will show “transfer” on your transcript. If you didn’t register yet with the ECFMG then you should be good, but don’t take my word for it.

Currently, SJSM have cleared anything and everything that stood in the way of the Bonaire campus's accreditation so you don't need to worry.  The best thing is to call SJSM’s main office and ask them what happened in detail.

Bottom like is, SJSM Bonaire still has IMED accreditation and it will continue to run.

Here is the letter the students received from the main office:

We are pleased to announce our IMED listing issue has been RESOLVED

Over the past months we have been working closely with the Dutch Government regarding the school's accreditation.

We have been advised that these discussions have been successful and ourIMED listing is secure. We are now waiting for the official extension notification documentation which is due shortly.

The extension means SJSM Bonaire will continue to operate as normal with the support of the Dutch government and local Bonaire administration. Our students can therefore focus on their medical studies with certainty.

Sincerely,

Saint James School of Medicine - Bonaire

Administration

A year from today I was on the plane back to the United States of America. I was one of the happiest and relived persons among my classmates. I only had 4 hours of sleep that day because of all the time I spent having fun the night before and packing to leave.  The day before we had the white coat ceremony and saying goodbye to everyone who I saw for 16 months took time.  Since I have been back, I developed regrets from my experience in Bonaire. I know it’s been a year but I still think about the little good times I had and if I knew then what I know now I would make the best of my stay in Bonaire.

Regret #1

I didn’t get out as much. I was too worried about getting A’s in Bonaire, but at the end of the day grades in Bonaire didn’t matter, it was as if you passed or not.

Regret #2

I didn’t make enough friends. Living in Bonaire is a one in a lifetime experience and you learn a lot when you intermix with other people of different backgrounds.

Regret #3

I didn’t enjoy the island. The island is one of a kind, and there are somethings on the island that you will not find anywhere else in the world. If you missed out all the fun you had on the island then you should also regret it.

I advise my readers to learn from my regrets and enjoy your time in Bonaire so you don’t have the same regrets as me.  I know studying medicine is a serious matter, but life is short and enjoy as much as you can. You have to sacrifice at least 7 years to become a practicing physician in the US, and so take every opportunity you can get to have fun.

This is actually one of the forgotten stories of my time in Bonaire. Sometimes I don’t realize how many times I mentioned something because of so many blog posts that I have written. As you know the Bonairians will try to squeeze every cent out of you if you have an American or Canadian passport. Trust me when I tell you, the vast majority of Bonairians are not your friends. Only a small handful of Bonairians are good people, but that can be said for any group of people, even in America. However, in Bonaire, if you are an American or Canadian citizen you are venerable. The native Bonarians fear the European Dutch, not the Americans, surprising I know…j/k. And when they see that you are a white person, they think you are loaded with cash. My landlords are very unsympathetic, they know I'm a venerable foreign student and even then they asked me to pay extra rent money when I wasn't staying for the entire month.  So for the last month I left for a friend's house and my landlords couldn't find anyone to replace me for that month; sucks for them, they could've made some money instead of no money.

The Bonaire government will charge you over $40 in exit tax when you leave the country. So someone told me that if you’re still going to USA or Canada through local flights then tell them you are going to Aruba or Curacao or whichever part of the Netherlands island your connecting to. By doing so you avoid paying so much and you just have to pay less than $10 in local tax. I did and it worked.

I took Insel Air to Curacao and trust me when I say this; that airline is run by idiots. Insel Air left my luggage in Bonaire and the officials standing around didn’t know what to do. So I had to go and ask around to different officials in what do to. I had to call back and forth until I found an official who spoke English. I filled out a lost luggage form and got their office number, cell phone number, their manager’s number, just enough numbers for me call constantly to drive them insane. I went to American Airlines in Curacao and told them what happened and they just assured me that they’ll do whatever they can to get it. Unfortunately the luggage wasn’t lost in a domestic USA flight; otherwise the airline who lost it would just send me a check in the mail.

Two days later after I got back home I called the non-English speaking official in Curacao and understood his broken English enough to confirm that my luggage came at my local airport.  And yes I communicated well with him because I had Google Translate right in front of me when replied back in Spanish to the guy.  I went to my home State's airport and apparently no available airport official could help me, what a surprise. I made a mistake of asking a TSA officer of where to go, those idiots don’t know much, except of how to use their authority to feel on women passengers; I’m kidding.  Luckily I found an official of the airline, which was supposed to bring my luggage, and we resolved things out after a while.  The problem was that the Curacao airport official gave me 6 out of the 8 tracking numbers over the phone; and the missing two tracking numbers were two zeros, go figure. Anyways, I was taken to a back room where a lot of lost luggages were and I found my luggages half beaten up. So, I avoided paying luggage fees to the airline and I avoided paying extra money to the Bonaire government. I don’t feel guilty about it because Bonaire government charged me on this and that, even to get my deposit back from immigration office; and I know all SJSM would've done the same.  At the end everything worked out well, except for the half-beaten up luggages which cost me over $300.

By the way, this happened when I returned to USA last December.

The last 30 days seems to be the most hectic; in 30 days I am leaving Bonaire. I got myself in a position where I have to complete so many tasks in less than 30. All MD4 students are to complete a big research project and present the project. The research project requires using principles of epidemiology. We can work in a group of 4 to 5 people. Epidemiology is not my favorite subject nor is it interesting. The topics covered are very boring and to me yet I have to learn the material; the subject is basically biostatistics.

Other tasks I have to keep up are studying for PDI and Systemic Pathology. Honestly, I am so sick of coming to class every day. I study better while I’m in the comfort of my home. I am far more focused on the subject when I am in my room with no one around me to distract me. However, by Saint James School of Medicine’s attendance policy, all students are required to have 80% attendance per block in order to take the block exams.

Tuition Increased

The SJSM newsletter came out and 52 students have applied to the national match program so, it looks as if SJSM is improved a lot in terms of helping students pass Step 1. Tuition went up $500 from $4,500 to $5,000, if this keeps on going up then SJSM will no longer be the cheapest medical school to go to. Clinical tuition increased also; it’s now $7,500. Before, when I was an MD1, the tuition for clinical clerkship was $6,900; so it went up by$600. I hope they don’t increase it anymore until the school gets federal loans otherwise students will have to take long breaks from months to years in order to pay for school.

As for AICM, many classmates have talked to Chicago office and found a very strict policy for the first clinical semester.

Before anyone can take the USMLE Step 1 exam the following conditions must be met by the student:

- Take AICM Semster

- Pass NMBE Exam

- Pass ExamMaster Exam made by the school

Once the conditions are met, the school will give the green light to take the USMLE Step 1. Don’t think you can take it without the permission of SJSM. No medical student can take the USMLE Step 1 without the permission of a medical institution.

Xavier School of Medical left for the Curaçao island. I’m not certain, but I was told that the Dutch government told that medical school to leave the island due to the lack of accreditation or something, I could be wrong though. And SJSM was also given free land in Bonaire, by the Dutch government, to build a brand new campus as it expands. But instead, we got the new building which where the students of MD1, MD2, and Pre-Med1 are. Xavier is also to be renamed to Avalon School of Medicine since the name “Xavier” with the same logo belongs to another medical school in Aruba.

Anyways moving on with the topic, ever since Xavier Medical School left, there have been minor changes on the island. Chicago office told us that the Dutch government gave them the report that, just the students of Bonaire, makes the island $6 million annually. Now that’s a big amount of money just from students. It’s kind of hard to believe but one of the students told me that he already spent $100,000 for tuition and staying in Bonaire. Plus after every block exams, students hold end of block parties and some spend over $100 in beer so, yeah $6 million from us student to Bonaire is believable. Bonaire does not generate any marginal profit. Holland actually has to put money into the island in order to keep the Bonaire’s economy running. Therefore, it’s in the best interest of the Netherlands to keep Saint James School of Medicine, because it’s over 10 years old and it has a good number of accreditations.

Apartments are Cheaper

Since the Xavier students left, even though they are smaller bunch than us SJSM students, the landlords will take whatever they get. Medical students stay on the island all year around, while tourists come and stay for couple of weeks and leave. Therefore, it’s in the best interest of the landlords to rent to the medical students. I know a three bedroom place, which was about around $2100 lowered to around $1600, after Xavier left. And that price includes all the utilities such as water, electricity, internet, and cable. Real estate companies are getting it hard because they used to charge students like crazy such as a 1 bedroom place, which is very small by the way, with kitchen and bathroom for $915 and that does NOT include the utilities. However, now the landlords took over their places and lowered the prices.

Immigration is a pain in the butt. One lady in one booth instructs that I have to do this and that and another lady tells me I didn’t have to do all that and the third lady tells me she doesn’t have time to explain things. With this new system the Bonarians found an excuse not to work for this week. They are making me getting back my Nafl 1000, which is around $600, a brutal pain. I got hold of the exit form which I need seven or eight stamps; and it’s all in Dutch. I took the liberty to translate it for those who need it. Just follow the words and numbers once you get the form from the immigration office.  The numbers are not on the form, I only added them to easily connect between the English and Dutch words.    New students who are coming in January 2011 will NOT have to go through this.  This unprofessional conduct will end this year.  Good luck!

Dutch Version
1. Eilandontvanger Bonaire
2. Afdeling Burgerzaken i.o
3. namens het hoofd van afdeling Burgerzaken geef ik u kennis van het voornemen van definitief vertrak van:
4. Naam:
5. Voornamen
6. Geboren te
7. Op
8. Adres
9. ik verzoek u mij zo spoedig modelijk mede te delen of tegen het vertrek van betrokkene uwerzijds bezwaar bestaat.
10. Stempel en paraaf van de diensten
11. inspectie der belastingen
12. Openbaar ministerie
13. Landontvanger
14. Eilandontvanger
15. Sociale Verzekering Bank
16. Afdeling Burgerzaken
17. Nieuwe Toelatingsorganisatie


English Version
1. Bonaire Island Receiver
2. Department of Civil i.o
3. Behalf of the Head of Department of Civil I give you the intention of permanently vertrak of:
4. Name:
5. First Name
6. Born in
7. On
8. Address
9. I give my earliest fashion conducive to notify the person concerned or against the departure of objection on your part.
10. Stamp and initials of the services
11. Inspection of Taxes
12. Prosecution
13. Recipient Country
14. Island Receiver
15. Social Insurance Bank
16. Department of Civil
17. New Admissions organization

I know I haven’t blogged lately, it’s because I’m very busy and I am very tired. The new semester is coming up and all of you new students should’ve already booked a roundtrip ticket to Bonaire. And I want to emphasize on getting roundtrip ticket because Bonaire’s airport officers will check to see if you have a ticket to go home; it is mandatory to have a return ticket home.

The upcoming MD1, MD2, and the new pre-med students will be taught in a new building further away from the rest of us. I don’t exactly how far but I know that the school is working on arranging shuttle rides for the students. I heard the new building is brand new is so much better than our current building.

We had an election so we have a new SGA. The president of SGA noted that there will be no rides available to pick up the new students due to lack of funds so for those who emailed me I replied back regarding the rides.

The building in a red circle, in the picture below, is the student lounge, which is open 24/7 and so if you want to catch the current students then stop by there. The campus is 7 minutes walk from downtown and couple of minutes walk from Cultimara Supermarket.

There will be a good number of students who are staying in Bonaire for the break. We only have 10 days off till the next semester. Therefore, it’s not economically good to spend $500 on a roundtrip ticket to go home for a short time.

So that’s all for now, I have a lot of things to do and not enough time. I won’t be blogging till this semester is over which is around one and a half weeks. Good luck to the new MD1s and Pre-Med1s.

The new semester is approaching and by now new students should already have turned in all the papers to the Chicago office, no exceptions. If you haven’t turned in all your immigration papers already to the Chicago office, then expect immigration approval delays or other issues on Bonaire. Chicago representatives may tell you that it’s ok after you turn in your papers after their deadline, but we’re students in Bonaire, and we know the hell that our classmates have to go through because they were late.

One of my friends didn’t make any calls or did not contact anyone in Bonaire; he just showed up and he suffered a lot. I have made a check list of all the things you should consider for the first two weeks of Bonaire.

1. Book your airline tickets now, try making it on a Sunday. On Fridays you have limited time to go around because most places are closed in the weekends, especially all the Banks.

2. Book you hotel room. It’s urgent that you reserve your hotel room. Don’t ever expect for a vacant hotel room. Remember you will be coming in the same time as other MD students and tourists so those rooms will go by fast. I personally recommend Divi Flamingo Hotel because I stayed there and I loved it.

3. Most flights from USA/Canada arrive in the weekends so get enough personal items to last for the weekend. For example, small tooth paste, snacks, etc. Eating out, is very expensive so keep that in mind.

4. Get yourself an unlocked quad-band GSM phone, trust me you will need it. A quad-band is like the Motorola RAZR or the Apple iPhone.

5. On Monday morning get a pre-paid Digicel or a Chippi GSM card and load it up on your cell phone.

6. On Monday morning or anytime during the week, come and stop by the student lounge. You will meet current students and new MD students from your class. Trust me, unless you’ve came to Bonaire before, you will not know your way.

7. And about the housing issue, don’t waste your time or money calling landlords from USA/Canada. First come to the island and then call them because they will not take you seriously unless you are on the island.

Updated (8-17-10) : No SGA members will be on the island during the break so no rides will be available.  Also, they didn't get the funding to rent cars and pay for gas.

Lately I’m having stomach aches. I don’t know exactly but it’s probably has to do with some things I ate which was processed in South America. In the grocery stores some items are from America while others are from Brazil, Venezuela, Chile, etc. Bonaire is very close to Venezuela so a lot of the biscuits, canned foods, chicken stocks, etc. are all sold in Bonaire. I bought some things from Cultimara grocery store near SJSM; I might just withdraw from eating everything except Ramen noodles to get by till my stomach gets better.

I had several moments in the bathroom. After wards,  I drank lots of water including one glass of sugar/salt water.  When you’re in Bonaire keep in mind what you buy, just because it’s cheap doesn’t mean it’s the product for you.

1. You’re the happiest person on the plane when you're leaving Bonaire, and all the tourists think you’re CRAZY!
2. When the electricity goes out, the class is over.
3. Between classes you go to Spankhoek across the street for a BEER.
4. Milk costs more on the island than the COW it came from!
5. The same lame people drive in their lame cars back in forth from Karal’s to city cafe for the entire night, because it’s COOL.
6. Your professors actually party with you!
7. You have to take pictures of your grades when they are posted because they MAGICALLY change at the end of the year.
8. You think that KARALS and CITY CAFE are CLUBS!
9. SERO still talks about himself in 3rd person. (Sero says, " Sero likes fast cars, Sero will fix that, Sero very good handyman."
10. The library is never open! And it’s full of engineering books.
11. You know that all your teachers are brown and so are your CADAVERS!!
12. You think that Della is the nicest local on Bonaire.
13. You call BONAIRE... BONER...
14. You tell everyone you’re going to a Caribbean School and they think you are the luckiest person ever!
15. The prices of the same Subway sandwich changes everyday depending on the mood of the cashier.

I found some of these from FaceBook and few I added myself.

Everyone is in the FIFA craze. Some students even skipped school just to see the game of Netherlands vs. Brazil. Of course as we know now Netherlands won against Brazil and the streets of Bonaire went crazy. Netherlands fans were honking their horns every street they turned. Of course since Bonaire is a Dutch colony we have Dutch people everywhere and they made sure their victory is known. Watch the video below.

Everyone is getting ready to watch the world cup. Some classmates are preparing to skip classes on some days to watch games played by their favorite teams. I found the FIFA theme music video sang by Shakira called "Waka Waka This is Afica". The song is kind of catchy; it's sung in English and in Africana languages.

Ok, there is a lot of questions of what will happen to SJSM when Bonaire becomes a direct part of Netherlands. I sat down with a teacher from the administration in Bonaire and he told me what the current status of the school is.

It seems that some of the students are out of control. Students fight, they get physical, for seats and chase each other in the classroom. Some students, especially the pre-med students came back from their vacation on the week of the tests.

When we were having class there was a lot of screaming outside. It was two MD2 students who got into an argument but other students got into between and separated them. I saw one of the students and not surprisingly that student is part of the party crowd.

On a Monday, two students almost got into a fist fight all because of seats in the front of class. Student A left his notebook on a seat to reserve his seat from last Friday. Student B, saw the notebook and thought Student A always takes everyone’s seats in the past so he placed Student A’s notebook on the desk next to the first desk. Student B sits down and places his laptop on the desk because the the seats should be taken on a first come, first serve basis. Student A walks in and argues for the seat but student B refuses because student A always takes other people’s seat, including his own, in the past. So, student A pulls on student A’s computer but student B grabs it and places down on the desk and tells student A to calm down. Student A argues and argues and then lifts the desk on a 45 degree angle. Student B was sitting on a seat pad so there is no friction on the seat; therefore, when student A lifted the desk up slightly, student B slid off the desk and fell on the floor. Looking at the situation anyone can tell that it’s not going to end well. Student A is short and hot headed and student B is big and calm. Student B got up and aggressively went after student A. Obviously this won’t end well for student A so he ran the opposite direction and tripped on a bunch of computer wires and the classroom’s computer fell along with him. Then other fellow students helped student A up while student B was taken outside by another student. Student B didn’t do anything while student A is proud of what he did. Student A was warned for expulsion by the dean because apparently that wasn’t the only incident by Student A.

The attendance policy states that students must have 80% attendance per block in order to sit for the tests for that block. As I mentioned before, there are a lot of party people in the school and I don’t know how they get by when the classes demand so much studying. However, it’s their business so I don’t bother with it. The vacation after last semester is supposed to be a weeklong but most people took two weeks off and a few took three weeks off. Therefore, the dean stated that from now on, any student that does not show up for orientation, which is held a day before the first day, will be expelled without question. The school is autonomous from the Chicago administration when it comes to handling attendance and academics. The Chicago administration takes care of the financial matters, IT matters, government matters with the Bonaire’s and Anguilla’s governments, employment, etc. basically everything else.