(CONGRATS) : St Jago High wins Stock Market Game. Lando Graham and Demar Blake top performers....Calabar High School student Donald Lydner won $10,000 for third place. Thirty-seven schools participated this year, up from 22 last year.

ALDANE WALTERS Career&Education writer editorial@jamaicaobserver.com  Sunday, June 14, 2015  

Winner accepts prize

SOON after the Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) Stock Market Game began last October St Jago High School student Lando Graham found himself in last place. But by the time trading ended in May, he had risen above the competition and, at the awards ceremony on Friday at the Knutsford Court Hotel in Kingston, he walked away with the $20,000 cash prize.

Graham's schoolmate Demar Blake earned second place, taking home $15,000.

Their individual successes combined made St Jago the top-performing school in the seventh annual games, earning the institution $40,000, a tablet computer and a trophy.

Calabar High School student Donald Lydner won $10,000 for third place. The three top boys also received plaques and certificates of participation.

Graham said the win was as a result of hard work.

The top three students in the 2014-2015 Stock Market
 Game (from left) Donald Lynder, Lando Graham and
 Donmar Blake along with top teacher Elorine Johnson
(second right) and General Manager of the
 Jamaica Stock Exchange Marlene Street Forrest.

"I really wanted to do this and I knew that was going to be hard work. I did a lot of research and moved up slowly," he said, recounting his journey throughout the competition.

The sixth-form student said that upon starting the game he immediately made profits, but foolish decision-making caused him to lose a lot of money subsequent to that. The loss caused him to consider withdrawing, but he dug deep and was intrinsically motivated to restart, moving from last place all the way to the top.

"When I was at the bottom, I saw that failure was only the opportunity to begin again; but more intelligently," he said, smiling. more