Queen Rania meets with local community members during a visit to School   Her Majesty Queen Rania on Wednesday paid a visit to the Rmeil Secondary School for Girls in Al Jiza, and commended their spirit of community, cooperation and volunteerism .
The school, which won a gold award in the Healthy Schools Accreditation Programme earlier this month, is a Madrasati initiative phase one school, according to a statement from Her Majesty’s office.
The programme is adopted by the Royal Health Awareness Society (RHAS), in partnership with the ministries of health and education, to accredit schools that succeed in implementing the national school health standards, according to the statement.
The Queen greeted teachers and schoolchildren in first grade classrooms before proceeding to meet with educators, students and members of the local community, who briefed her on interventions in the school by Madrasati, RHAS and other partners.
A group of mothers spoke about the impact of Madrasati on the students as well as the local community, and their increasing involvement in the school after joining the initiative’s efforts.
Her Majesty also met with volunteers who have provided a pillar of support to Madrasati and heard from them about their work in the school.
The volunteers, who come from different age groups and varied backgrounds from within the community, have enriched the Madrasati experience in the school and accelerated the speed at which all its improvements and programmes were implemented, the statement said.
“The results are clearly visible and the fruits of our labour are here for all to see,” one volunteer pointed out.
Queen Rania commended the volunteers on their efforts, not only for helping Madrasati, but for helping the local community come together and work hand-in-hand to achieve a better educational environment for their children.
Stressing the importance of volunteerism and the noble spirit it embodies, the Queen said their work is as essential in developing local communities as that of any agency or governmental body.
Her Majesty also lauded the collaborative effort through which the Rmeil Secondary School for Girls became a leading role model for other schools to emulate.
Touring a number of classrooms and greeting students, the Queen watched an 11th grade class performance where the students put together a short sketch about raising children in the badia for their colleagues.
In addition, Her Majesty dropped in on a third grade class “learning the English language through phonetics”, and heard the students’ feedback on the new programmes implemented in the school and the effect these had on them.
Queen Rania also stopped by the school cafeteria where a group of mothers prepares and sells healthy meals to the students, the statement said.
The mothers expressed to Her Majesty their joy in being part of the development of their children’s school, and their comfort in knowing that their daughters are eating nutritious food.
Their efforts helped the school win a gold award during the RHAS ceremony on November 2, where the Queen presented awards to 48 schools, which were honoured in the gold, silver and bronze categories. The schools that received gold awards were those which had participated and received accreditation for three consecutive years.
Madrasati programmes and workshops implemented in the school include courses on first aid, personal hygiene, traffic awareness, parenting skill development and nutrition, in addition to illiteracy elimination classes, extra-curricular activities and career counselling.
The King Abdullah II Award for Physical Fitness and the Jordan Education Initiative programmes are also implemented in the school.