Dear students, staff, parents, alumni, and friends of JMC,
I bring you Advent greetings from a very serene Heights, as we welcome, with joy and gratitude the last month of the calendar year and school term. Indeed, we are joyful for the grace to be experiencing another year-end and grateful for the blessing that graced our college community in the penultimate month of the year, which witnessed an array of enriching academic and non-
academic activities. Beginning with a celebration of All Saints’ Day, a celebration, which affords the Phoenixes the opportunity to celebrate the patrons and patronesses of their respective Houses, and culminating with the celebration of the Solemnity of Christ the Universal King, November provided us the opportunity to appreciate and strive for human excellence, which is the ultimate goal of Jesuit education. As the celebration of human excellence, All Saints’ Day challenges us to be saintly by the building of our individual selves holistically day by day.
Undeniably, the climactic event of the month was the 7th Annual Inter-House Sports Competition, which was a huge success by any estimation. I thank all who worked tirelessly to make the event great and memorable, especially the Director of Sports, Mr. Joseph Odo, and the indefatigable members of the Sports committee. Being an integral part and essential component of our brand of education, I must express profound gratitude to the various Parents’ Associations of the college for their sponsorship of the different aspects of the competition, and more so for gracing it with their energetic presence. In a special way, I thank the chair of the occasion, Chief Ikenna Okafor and his beloved spouse, Dr. Esther Okafor, for honoring the college in so great a manner. In the same vein, I applaud the Phoenixes at the heart of the competition for their active engagement in sports and other co-curricular activities designed for their holistic growth and development. Special thanks to those who amassed a significant number of medals, thus deciding the outcome of the competition for the four Houses of the college. In recognition of their spirit of sportsmanship, resilience, discipline, and passion, I am pleased to designate them our Phoenixes of the Month, even as I charge them to bring their spirit of sportsmanship to bear on every aspect of their lives. Deserving of special recognition among the Phoenixes of the Month is Greatness Motunrayo Ayeni (Class of 2030), who experienced a huge setback during the 6th Annual Inter-House Sports Competition, having fractured her right collarbone, which she required surgery to repair. Her emergence as one of the most decorated athletes, a year later, is a tale of Hope Reborn. Bravo, Greatness! Saving the best for last, I congratulate ‘the House of the college,’ by virtue of colour, Gonzaga House, for yet another triumphant outing. The commitment of your members to sports has not gone unnoticed, as you make it three (3) out of seven (7) Inter-House Sports victories. I salute your courage and resilience!
Now, having received further updates from the Senior School Certificate Examination Board, namely, the West African Examination Council, registration of our Class of 2026 Phoenixes for their certificate exam is currently underway, with the deadline of the exercise being December 31, 2025. I hereby appeal to parents of the graduating class to do their part and ensure the smooth registration of their children before the stipulated deadline.
In a quest to gauge their knowledge of Mathematics, several Phoenixes between Grade 9 and 12, participated in the November 13, 2025, American Mathematics Competition (AMC). The online competition is designed to fortify students for effective performance in international examinations such as the International Mathematics Olympiad (IMO) with its attendant reward/benefits. Given the peculiarities of the competition, efforts were made by the college to register students with good knowledge of the subject, which unfortunately did not materialize due to numerous unauthorized registrations by parents. Consequently, I wish to state categorically that one needs to obtain clearance from the college to effectively enlist a student of the college in a competition as a Phoenix. To act contrary to this norm constitutes an affront to the college, which will not be taken lightly. I have attached, for your review, the performance analysis of the students who participated in the competition, and I wish to congratulate those who met the 50% pass mark threshold. Special congratulations to Naetochukwu Godwin Ochi (Class of 2026), who obtained a 92% score in the AMC-12 competition.
As they anticipate graduation and look forward to beginning tertiary studies next academic year and in the near future, several Phoenixes of the Class of 2026 took different international and standardized exams this academic term. I applaud their resilience and resolve in the quest for excellence, while appealing to parents to avoid stretching their wards beyond reasonable limits for their mental health and wellbeing. As it were, combining the numerous exams and their school work can be overwhelming for our Phoenixes, and worse still, affect their first term performance in Grade 12, which undercuts the Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of their academic transcripts. Attached, for your review, are the performance analysis of the graduating class in the August, September, and October 2025 Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT). Also attached is the performance analysis of the Class of 2027 Phoenixes in the October 2025 Preliminary Scholastic Assessment Test (P-SAT). I applaud the Phoenixes for their impressive performances and charge them to strive for the Magis, of which they are capable.
As November gives way to December, the Phoenixes are gearing up for their End of Term Exams. I commend them to your fervent prayers for good health, courage and confidence as they strive to give an account for their learning this term. Following their exams, preparations will begin in earnest for the 20th Anniversary of the Death of our Beloved Sixty Angels, for whom the college exists as a monument. That said, I wish to reiterate that participating in the Memorial Day celebration is mandatory for all Phoenixes, for their absence amounts to complete disregard for the spiritual integrity of the college, which as principal, I refuse to condone or entertain. Consequently, premeditated or forced absence will attract an incommutable sanction of a week-long out-of-school suspension at the beginning of next academic term. I hereby enjoin all parents to simply comply with the school regulations in this regard. Indeed, honouring the memory of our beloved Angels on the anniversary of their passing is a noble act which ought to be observed by every Phoenix who is a beneficiary of the education and formation provided by the college.
To conclude, I enjoin you to read the array of amazing articles, poems, reflections, stories, and reports across the pages of this newsletter edition, the penultimate of this school term and calendar year. Your doing so amounts to an appreciation of the literary skills and imaginative abilities of our excellent Phoenixes, which we genuinely owe them and must not fail to give them.
I wish, one and all, a happy end to the Jubilee year 2025, praying that the days and weeks ahead be filled with joy and a deep sense of fulfillment for all, by the grace of the almighty, we have been able to accomplish as individuals, families, and partners in the mission of forming leaders who are open to growth, intellectually competent, loving, religious, and committed to justice, all for the greater glory of God and the flourishing of all humankind.
With profound gratitude,
Alexander E. Irechukwu, S.J.