I'll Wear My Crest with Pride.

"Reputation takes years to build, and only seconds to destroy."

Perhaps this was something the students at Christ King Secondary School have only just learned now that their school has been so harshly branded as the ‘Knacker School of Cork’ by 96fm DJ Neil Prendeville, a man who should know better than anyone how badly one sensationalized  not to mention isolated case can affect a reputation in the long run.

If I hated my school, perhaps I would agree with Prendeville.

Our school is extremely large and so to keep numbers up accept quite a few questionable characters. These are not people who are influenced by the school however, teachers don’t walk into classrooms with a guide on ‘how to pull hair’. At 12:20 every afternoon we recite the Angelus, not the rules of Fight Club. Yes, these girls behaved in an appalling manner, and yes, we are ashamed to admit that they were once (or perhaps still are) a part of our school. That does not make our school a ‘Knacker Hole’, such a thing does not exist, and to even call a collective group of people knackers is extremely offensive, not to mention small minded. Do not tar us all with the same brush. It's like blaming a Tabby for a lion attack, simply because they're both classified as 'cats'.

I do not hate my school, in fact, coming to Christ King has perhaps been one of the best decisions of my life.

In 2007, I came to this school as a chubby 12 year old girl with terrible roots and an ego that a fly could easily outsize. In 2013, I will leave Christ King as an accomplished young woman, comfortable and happy in my own skin, ready to face the big bad world after 6 years of preparation and guidance from the staff and students of Christ King. I owe more to Christ King than I’m even aware of. It’s a school that provides more services to students than other school in Cork, I myself study Japanese as a Leaving Cert Subject during school hours free of charge. I have quite a few friends who study Applied Maths for free not to mention the Agricultural Science class who are offered discounted prices for classes after school on a Wednesday. Never before have I seen a school so accommodating towards Students with all kinds of interests, point me towards a school that offers such high, affordable standards and I’ll point towards the pigs flying above your head.

It’s not only the classes that provide students with the best opportunities to excel, but the staff’s interest in students activities outside of school is a kind that I had never experienced before Christ King. I've participated in debating and public speaking competitions, admittedly I've never won, but my participation and enthusiasm alone was enough to have teachers asking me how I was getting on, this participation led to a friendly relationship with my debating teacher, who later became my reference for a Travel Award to The Governors Institute of Vermont 2012 and who I believe, ultimately helped me to win the trip of a lifetime which I had the pleasure to go on last summer.

It is because of these reasons, and so many more that I cannot in good conscience say that ‘Christ King is the knacker school of Cork’. I am not the rare success story, those two girls are the rare failure.

For the last 5-6 years I have worn my CKSS crest with pride and I have no intention of stopping now.