Varna Thomas of Jamaica’s Ardenne High School has been named the CAPE Student of the Caribbean for 2016. Thomas, 17, received grade ones on every exam in every subject in two years of sixth form in Pure Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, Chemistry, Physics, Biology, Caribbean Studies and Communication Studies. Thomas said she was “surprised, grateful and blessed” to receive the honor in recognition of her academic accomplishments. And rather than promote herself, Thomas talked about her older sister, Dea Thomas, whom she describes as more hard-working than she is. Her sister also won the CAPE Student of the Caribbean award in 2013. In spite of her age, Varna Thomas is a first-year student at the University of the West Indies Medical School as a 2016 recipient of the University of the West Indies’ Open Scholarship. Thomas came to Jamaica in 2007, emigrating from India with her family. She gives credit to her strong family ties for her success in academics. Discussing her award, she said she was “very grateful to have had parents who took such an active interest in their child’s learning.”