These are oft-heard reactions from persons, among them many in education. Any profile of this institution must begin with an explanation of the relationship between the Sixth Form Government School and Polytechnic Institute.

The Polytechnic Institute is an adult tertiary institution established in 1959 to prepare adults and school leavers for the Advanced Level and Degree programme of external bodies using part-time classes. Dr. Rudranath Capildeo was first Principal, and Mr. Wilfred Jessamy, Vice Principal. 

In the mid-sixties the College of Arts and Sciences was established at St. Augustine, where shortly after, tuition fees were waived for nationals. The Polytechnic degree programme was then discontinued since they were no longer popular because fees had to be paid. The Institution’s emphasis therefore became Advanced Level Courses.

The Sixth Form Government School is said to have been conceived during the “Meet-the-Schools” tour of the late Dr. Eric Williams during the early sixties. During his visit to the Polytechnic Institute, he discovered that the classrooms and laboratories were unused during the day and immediately suggested that plans for establishing a Sixth Form College on the premises be explored. Our Sixth Form College opened its doors in 1964. At the time, Sixth Form Colleges were a new concept in post-secondary schooling. The first Sixth Form College was established in England in 1964. We are therefore, one of the oldest Sixth Form Colleges in existence.