GAC Students visit Neotropical Butterfly Park for Research

Six are members of AlphaMax 's 2012 Global Assessment Program class visited The Neotropical Butterfly Park in Lelydorp on Thursday 17th May on a research field trip. The students are writing a research paper on a local environmental site for their science course 023. Their reports will be sent to Australia for moderation.


The GAC 2012 group consisted of Yamil Baptista, Gabriel Grauwde, Timothy Naarendorp, Vinantia Nandlal, Ruth Saman and Kristina Taylor, and was accompanied by three tutors--Mr. Milton Drepaul ( Director of the GAC program), Mr. Emiel Krak ( Deputy Principal and Head of Science) , Mr.Osafa Johnson -Science tutor, Ms. Sharon Hoppie ( Middle School Director) and Ms. Zabeeda Nazir( Middle School Tutor).

The Neotropical Butterfly Park is owned and operated by  Amera Eriks and Ewout Eriks.

The group left school at about 8.15 am and returned at 2pm. During the field trip the weather was sunny and fine but when they returned there was a tropical rainstorm in the city.

The tasks that the group did were: recording  abiotic variables they  in the park area;describing and recording the size and type of plant population in the study area;looking at  animal distribution on the site; selecting and classifying a total of six species; constructing food chains and webs for the ecosystem;describing human influence in the park and looking at the relationship between the various elements in the ecosystem.

The students thoroughly enjoyed the experience and also a delicious meal in their cafe. They appreciated the fact that Mrs. Eriks made the park available to them exclusively for the period they visited. Mr. & Mrs Eriks have two children attending the AlphaMax Academy and have previously extended their hospitality to the school.  In particular, the group would like to thank our tour guide, Rachel Dontono, for the excellent way in which she guided us through the park.
Ruth Saman

The Neotropical Butterfly Park is unique experience.  It is not only peaceful and relaxing, but also educational.  We would recommend that anyone who wants a taste of the Surinamese tropical rainforest should visit this beautiful park.

Shafeek Nazir--Future Moviemaker

                                                                           By Vinantia Nandlal GAC 2012 Class

Shafeek is a graduate of the AlphaMax Academy (2011 Class).  He was Valedictorian for his class and on graduation night he made a very moving and personal speech about the impact on his life of the unique AlphaMax program of studies and activity.

 For his work during the Academic year he received the Gandhi King Award, the Humanity Award, Art Excellence Award, and a Tagore Art award. During his student year at the Academy, he also made an excellent video about Gandhi’s life.

Shafeek found the experience at the Academy quite intriguing, because the AlphaMax seeks to bring out the talents and the gifts of each student.  He hopes to come back and teach in the near future. He is looking forward to earn a degree in Bachelor of Science as a starting point for his career.

Currently, he is working at the AlphaMax Academy as computer administrator. He has worked

On many projects for school and also outside school through AlphaMax Academy. He has also done a

Brochure for the President’s office.  Someone mentioned that Shafeek will soon release two spectacular videos –Msiba, My Love and Many Faces of Love

Shafeek has had extensive experience with major graphics software.  He has demonstrated significant creative skills in the multimedia industry.

I asked: How did you find out what your skills were? “

Shafeek replied, “It all started when I got interested in finding out how movies, cartoons, games, and all other TV programs were made. That’s when I really started seeking knowledge on these items and it helped me creating a starting point building up my skills.” 

One of my tutors told us recently that someone said to him that one day we might see Shafeek on stage in Hollywood receiving an Academy Award for a movie he made. I am looking forward to that day when he places Suriname on the world movie map.