Hidden between the exit from Bandar Utama to Tropicana lies the infamous school with an inspiring story of being transformed from a failing school to one where parents are fighting to put their children into. This is the story of the transformed school, SMK Tropicana.
Back in 2013, Daniel Tan our founder was driving around Generasi Gemilang (GG)'s office area one day when he stumbled upon SMK Tropicana. Being the inquisitive person he was, he entered the school compound on this school holiday week and met the newly transferred principal of SMK Tropicana, Pn. Ruth by chance.
He introduced himself and shared a little about GG's work when Pn. Ruth's face lit up. Interestingly enough, Pn. Ruth was looking for help in terms of building up the students, instilling good values and handling the discipline of the school. She had a few ideas on how to deal with these issues but meeting Daniel was like finding a part of the solution to her problems.
Wanting to support the school, GG's Youth Development team met up with the school counsellor Pn. Catherine and managed to identify a few programs GG could run in the school like Leadership & Lifeskills, Cyberwellness, Financial Literacy and Pusat Bimbingan Pelajar (PBP). These programs motivated the students, gave the students a chance to be mentored in their studies, and showed them how they had a choice to do well if they wanted to because there is so much potential in them.
With proper love and care, the students grew to be more disciplined and their academic results improved in a short span of 2 years. This improvement did not go unnoticed as the school was nominated and ultimately won the Bai'ah Awards in 2014 (an award for overall improvement in academic results, environment and discipline of the school). And GG was just proud to be a part of the school's transformation.
"Many of them don't understand how a group of people from outside can sit through with them, motivate them and talk to them. And they begin to sense that there are people out there who care for them." Pn. Ruth mentioned when we interviewed her. And it's evident when some of the GG staff goes to SMK Tropicana, the students would smile and say hi.
In an age where most youth would question their worth, by showing that we value them, they will learn to value themselves.