On the morning of 10th July 2026, the walls of the Jephthah Comprehensive Secondary School Chapel echoed with hymns, applause and the quiet pride of parents watching their children step into a new chapter. Forty-one teenagers, robed and radiant, filed in as Junior Secondary School students for the very last time. By the time the final blessing was said, they walked out as graduands of the Junior Secondary School class of 2026, carrying with them three years of formation in wisdom, faith, character and community that define the Jephthah experience.
For a school whose very name means “God Opens,” every graduation is more than a ceremony marking academic milestones. It is a testimony. It is proof, once again, that the doors opened for a child at admission can, with diligence and divine guidance, lead all the way to distinction.
A Ceremony Held in the Right Place
The graduation was hosted in the School Chapel, the spiritual heart of Jephthah Comprehensive Secondary School. Long before it is an academic institution, Jephthah is a Christian community, and the chapel setting was a deliberate reminder that everything the graduands had achieved; academically, socially, and personally, was built on a foundation of faith. Parents, guardians, staff and the Jephthah leadership gathered under one roof to celebrate not just examination scores, but the shaping of forty-one young lives.
The programme carried the unmistakable rhythm of a Jephthah event: worship, reflection, recognition and celebration, woven together with the warmth that has made Jephthah Comprehensive Secondary School a trusted name for Port Harcourt families for three decades.
A Charge From One Who Has Walked the Path
Every graduating class needs a voice that has already walked the road ahead of them, and this year, that voice belonged to Chinedu Onwuzor, a proud graduate of Jephthah’s Class of 2023. There is a particular kind of credibility that comes from a keynote speaker who once sat exactly where the graduands sat, who wore the same uniform, prayed in the same chapel and crossed the same academic hurdles only a few years prior.
In his keynote address, Onwuzor delivered a message that was as personal as it was instructive: an admonishment to the graduating class to keep being better. It was not a call to arrive at perfection, but an invitation to a lifelong posture, one of continuous growth, humility and self-improvement long after the graduation gowns come off. His address served as a bridge between where the JSS3 class of 2026 stands today and the possibilities that await them in Senior Secondary School and beyond, grounded in the reassurance that Jephthah alumni carry the values of the school with them wherever they go.
Excellence on Full Display
If the ceremony was the heart of the day, the academic recognitions were its crowning glory. Jephthah has never been a school that separates character from competence and this year’s awards reflected that philosophy in full measure.
Leading the entire graduating set was Ola Florence Iweila, who was honoured as the Overall Best Student, posting an outstanding average of 91.48% across all eighteen subjects from JS1 through JS3, a trajectory of consistent excellence that rose from 93.06% in JSS1 to a commanding finish. Her dominance did not end there; she also claimed the Junior Scientist and Engineer Award, topping Mathematics, Basic Science, Basic Technology, and Computer Studies with a combined average of 93.5%, and was additionally recognised as the Best Behaved Female Student for her obedience, reliability and readiness to share knowledge with her peers.
Academic distinction ran deep across the class:
- Arthur Osaseri David Azubuike claimed the Mathematics prize with a near-perfect 97.94%.
- Okoye Patrick Ifechukwu topped Basic Science, Fine Arts, and Social Studies, and earned honourable mentions across several other subjects, a testament to well-rounded brilliance.
- Aguma Ntams Melynda was celebrated for her gift with words, winning the Best in Creative Writing award as well as top honours in Igbo and Literature in English, in addition to being recognised as the Most Punctual Female Student.
- Bolarinwa Owooluwa Ireayomide topped French and was named Best Behaved Male Student, embodying the discipline Jephthah prides itself on instilling.
- Solo-Amadi Wisdom Chimazuru led the class in Business Studies, with a strong second-place finish in Mathematics.
- James Jesse Ehizemen and Newman Maxwell were recognised for excellence in Civic Education and History respectively.
- Ikpo David Chukwumela Eruchi was celebrated as the Neatest and Most Punctual Male Student, while Ikama Sinime received the Neatest Female Student award for consistent tidiness and adherence to the school’s standards.
- Brown Austine Isaiah was honoured with the Most Talented JS3 Award, recognised for his versatility across music, sports, drama, design and ICT.
- Perhaps one of the day’s most inspiring stories belonged to Lawyer Gamage Miriam, awarded Most Improved Student in Academics after climbing from a 61.95% average in JS1 to 72.10% in JS2 and an impressive 80.44% in JS3, a clear picture of what consistency and determination can achieve within the Jephthah system.
Beyond these standout names, dozens of other graduands received honourable mentions across subjects ranging from Agricultural Science and Civic Education to Music and Physical and Health Education, reflecting the breadth of talent nurtured within this single class of forty-one.
More Than a Ceremony — A Statement of Purpose
Every graduation at Jephthah Comprehensive Secondary School is, in many ways, a public demonstration of the school’s four pillars: Wisdom, Favour with God, Stature and Favour with Men. In the achievements of Ola Florence Iweila, the discipline of Ikpo David and Ikama Sinime, the creativity of Aguma Ntams Melynda, the growth of Lawyer Gamage Miriam, and the talent of Brown Austine Isaiah, one sees a class that did not simply pass through Junior Secondary School, they were shaped by it.
As these forty-one graduands prepare to begin Senior Secondary School, whether within Jephthah’s own halls or elsewhere, they carry with them more than certificates. They carry a foundation of Christian character, academic rigour and personal discipline that Jephthah has spent thirty years perfecting and that Chinedu Onwuzor, standing before them as living proof, urged them never to stop building upon.
To the JSS3 class of 2026: Jephthah is proud of you. Keep being better.
Jephthah Comprehensive Secondary School is a Christian secondary school in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, offering Junior and Senior Secondary education accredited by ACSI and approved by the Rivers State Ministry of Education. To learn more about admissions, visit jephthah.net/admissions.
