In a specially convened assembly held on January 12, 2012, 2011 IAAF world indoor games 400 M finalist Rondell Bartholomew was honoured by the staff and students of Mac Donald College for excellence in athletics and for flying the MDC flag high. Tribute was also paid to former coach Mr. Neville Glean who can be credited for playing a significant role in Bartholomew’s success. Among the specially invited guests was Miss Melise Ramjohn, former housemaster of Nyack house, the house Bartholomew was in during his tenure at Mac Donald College. Wednesday’s assembly, normally held on Monday, was not only to pay homage to Bartholomew but also to motivate the students to strive for excellence as outlined in the school’s motto: Saltando Alta Petimus. Following the praise and worship session by Mrs. Cyinnica Chitterman and Miss Ranisha Frederick,and brief remarks by the Acting Principal Miss Lorraine De Allie, the assembly focused on Rondell Bartholomew’s athletic journey. The tribute began with remarks by the Acting Principal who reflected on Bartholomew’s early life. She noted that though he came from the worst part of Duquense nicknamed Baghdad and from a family where no one had completed high school, he was able to rise against the odds. She impressed about students that they too, can rise against the odds. After the principal spoke, a quartet sang R. Kelly's "World’s Greatest". Then the floor was opened for the students to share their views. The boisterous crowd became very quiet and when no student volunteered to speak, former coach, Mr. Neville Glean shared his experiences. According to Mr. Glean, Bartholomew was no different from the other athletes. Initially, he was not very serious and his athletic skills were just average. There were several students who were better than him, but when he became serious he went from being average to excellent. Mr. Finley Jeffrey, the man that was instrumental in bringing Rondell Bartholomew to Mac Donald College spoke about the uncertainty that the principal and staff had when a decision had to be made about bringing Bartholomew to Mac Donald College. The doubts were not so much about Bartholomew, because even then Mr. Jeffrey saw his potential. The uncertainty centred around Bartholomew’s older brother Randy Bartholomew who had disappointedly not lived up to his true potential as an athlete and was constantly suspended for illdiscipline. Many feared that Bartholomew would also mirror his brother's behaviour. For a while, it seemed that Bartholomew was following in his brother’s footsteps until his senior year when he began taking his training with Mr. Glean seriously.In just a year of working with Mr. Glean, according to Jeffrey, Bartholomew was able to shave 9 seconds of the 55 seconds that he took to run the 400 metre event. With that he went from being a standby on the school’s INTERCOL relay team to a athletic force to be reckoned with. Just before the plaques were distributed, student Gemila Francis encouraged Bartholomew to "Fly" by singing her own rendition “Fly Away” and remarks were made by Miss Judith Best, lovingly regarded as Bartholomew's mom and Mr. Carl Andall. Best reminded Bartholomew to not allow the girls to distract him and Andall urged him to remain focused.The plaques of appreciation were then distributed to Glean and Bartholomew by Mrs. Dianne Abel-Jeffrey and Mrs Ginelle Andall respectively. Bartholomew began his brief speech by thanking the staff and students for supporting him over the years. According to Mr. Bartholomew, it was in his senior year that he decided that he wanted “it” and Mr. Glean realizing his seriousness and dedication took him there. He urged the students to give whatever talent that they possessed their all and that they too would be successful. The applause that punctuated Bartholomew’s speech was deafening, but was nothing compared to the pride and enthusiasm that illuminated the students’ faces who had behaved surprisingly well throughout the programme.