Karen Siyanbola has a diverse personality. Karen Siyanbola has a soft spot for students with behavioural and learning challenges. - Peta-Gaye Clachar/Freelance Photographer

Karen Siyanbola has a diverse personality. With an African surname (obtained through marriage) which most people mispronounce, she takes the mispronunciations with grace. It's a reflection of the principal's kind personality. Her voice is steady and retains the same kind tone with whomever she deals.

"That's for my mighty saints," explained Siyanbola, when a boy walked through her office door without knocking. All the while she juggles a telephone conversation, and, of course, me.

"I always tell them to knock, if they don't see anybody on the outside. But, I guess, just because the door was open, he just came in," Siyanbola said with a smile.

The new principal of Sts Peter and Paul Preparatory School in St Andrew has held the post for two months and explained that mighty saints is an attempt to teach their students honesty. The children are supposed to return any items found to her office. She then writes the item down, along with their names, and reads out the lists of mighty saints during devotion.

"You know that most people pocket money when they find it. We want to teach them that it doesn't matter how small it is, it belongs to someone else," the mother of one said.

"It seems to be working. They bring in dollar coins, rulers, all sort of things," she added.

With a double bachelor's degree in visual arts and special education from York University in Canada, the professional teacher has a soft spot for students with behavioural and learning challenges, and special needs.

"I do specialise in problematic disorders," she said while explaining her previous job at Ferdie's House, an alternative learning centre for persons with mental-health issues, like bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, anxiety and behavioural issues which prevent them from attending traditional schools. There she was passionate about developing curriculum for these persons who ranged from six to 54 years old, focusing on life skills.

'Anybody can get it'

"Anybody can get it," she said in reference to mental-health issues. "I got university students who get it, medical students who got it, people working. It's just what you are able to handle. It's your coping mechanisms and your socialisation skills, how you are able to cope with the stress," she said.

In one of her other posts as head of the Art Education Department and Edna Manley College for the Visual and Performing Arts, she found use for these skills as well.

"Even when I was at Edna, I did it because there are always students at every level who come in with special learning challenges, even at the tertiary level," she said.

Behavioural issues are not always the root of children underperforming in school or misbehaving in class, Siyanbola said. Most of the time, the issues lead right back to issues in the home.

There was a motor vehicle accident, where a car landed on a field on the school's premises. There was an incident which made her even more alert to the disservice which is being done to many of our children.

"There was this little boy who kept coming into the accident scene barefooted, into the mangled metal and the glass," she said, estimating that he was about five or six years old.

"He was sent into a scene that made other children cry," she said as many of the children who were not even close to the scene cried out of fear.

"I kept sending him back out ... I found out later he was sent in by his parents to scout to see what he could steal. He did take a bag with money, and the only reason he spoke up was because he didn't get any of the money," she said.

Siyanbola, who has also worked at Liberty Preparatory at the Priory School, said ensuring that all children do well in school entails getting many different aspects correct. These include good nutrition to ensure the proper development of the brain, educational support at home, good parent/student ratio in classrooms among others.

'I got university students who get it, medical students who got it ... It's just what you are able to handle.'