Molloy, principal of the Buff Bay High School.

NOT SO long ago, Cavelle Brown had no idea that she could ever become a prefect at Buff Bay High School, telling The Sunday Gleaner "I was loud and did not care".

However, when Brown, who will be going into fifth form shortly, learnt that she would be entrusted with the responsibility, she said, "I found myself getting calmer and calmer."

The new-found level of serenity proved a good foundation for the summer leadership training camp, which Brown says was "interesting, motivating. It gives me a lot of energy to go out and do things without people pushing me.

"I got bolder. I got the confidence to speak in public more, the knowledge to counteract and interact with my peers, to know the qualities of a leader - well spoken, well groomed, knowledgeable. They should be someone you can look up to. You do not have to be loud and boisterous. I was loud," Brown tells The Sunday Gleaner.

Initially, she was not the happiest camper, as she thought it would simply erase her summer holidays. Eventually, however, she decided to participate, having come to the conclusion that it would have a great impact on her life.

And it has. Brown says, "The principal tried her best. It has changed me a lot." She describes the segment of the camp that belonged to the Peace and Love in Society (PALS) organisation as "interesting and enjoyable" and that it "kept the day lively".

"We learnt how to manage conflict, how to deal with it in a positive way, not the negative," she says. "We learnt that if there is a student doing something wrong in school, (we should) find that child, to go to his or her level so they will say, 'You respect me, so I'll behave myself'."

anger-management lesson

Brown also says that they learnt anger management; how to calm down and work problems out. She speaks of strategies, such as writing down what enrages one and putting it in an anger jar.

Her social skills have also improved, as previously, Brown would converse almost exclusively with her group of friends. She found out that this was a problem in the prefect body and says, "I learnt not to be selfish," expanding the circle of those with whom she interacts.

And the actual conversations will be different from before, as Brown says she even learnt to speak "proper" English. "I was a patois person. Now you can't get me to speak it. Patois is a good language, but we need our English."

Brown is involved in "every single thing at my school", reeling off a list that includes the choir, 4-H Club and Girl Guides. "I am a strong leader. I always try to do my best," she says.

And she has a strong motivator.

"I believe in the principal. She motivates me a lot," Cavelle Brown tells The Sunday Gleaner.

The Buff Bay High School choir performs at the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission's National Children's Gospel Song Festival Finals, held at Ranny Williams Entertainment Centre in 2006.- file