Mr. Jake Proctor:

Good morning. My name is Jake Proctor and I studied at Strangford Integrated College in County Down from September 2008 until June 2015. I am eternally indebted to NICIE and those brave parents, governors and teachers who took a brave stand to create an integrated school on the Ards Peninsula. Strangford Integrated College has changed my life for the better. From the outset I felt like I truly belonged there. There is a real community feel at Strangford and the word "school" is not used. We use terms like "community" and "family" instead. It is an inclusive learning environment, like all integrated schools in Northern Ireland. We need more integrated schools and more places in them so that a greater number of young people can have their lives transformed by integrated education.

One of the key aspects of integrated education that I identify with is that it engages with division and celebrates difference. Sectarianism is combatted in integrated schools. For example, I have strong friendships across the divide, friendships I did not have before I joined Strangford and which I would never have had if I had gone to a controlled school. It is not just a buzzword or tick-box exercise; difference is actually celebrated in integrated schools. Just last month, I took an assembly at Strangford where I asked the younger students to find a person who was not like them and to find out three things that made that person who he or she was. I have seen very positive outcomes of this including strengthened friendships and better understanding of the past and of where we are going in future. Integrated education works as it encourages children to work with people from other communities and backgrounds from an early age. It has been a pleasure to be part of that. Educating children together works well to break down myths, stereotypes and perceptions, which is crucial if we are going to have any type of reconciliation in Northern Ireland.

Better than any of that, integrated education prepares young people for a very diverse life in the 21st century. It has helped me to prepare for a rapidly changing world and an uncertain future. I feel ready for third education and to start my degree at Queen's University in September thanks to Strangford College and integrated education. I do not have to think about mixing with the other as I have done it since I was 11 years of age. If I had gone to a controlled school, I guarantee that I would not have this luxury or this weight off my shoulders. I know this because I was the only one from my friendship group from primary school who went to an integrated school. The other four went to grammar schools in Belfast. Academically, we have performed equally over the last seven years but as far as making us 21st century citizens is concerned, they all agree that I have the upper hand. The notion of the other is not in my mindset or vocabulary. I am a non-believer so people's religion will never be a question I ask. The notion of the other has proven to be a challenge and an obstacle for the other boys. They know that when we walk into Queen's in September, we will enter an integrated environment. Each of us knows what we will face but thanks to integrated education at Strangford College, I am more than equipped with the tools to deal with this.

What do I blame the boys' fear on? It is a failure of the education system. The current segregated system of education in Northern Ireland is, as NICIE puts it, a key component of a negative peace. Is it fit for a society emerging from conflict? No. Are integrated kids better prepared for life in the 21st century and the diversity of university and the workplace? Absolutely. The last time I researched it, I found that 92% of school kids in Northern Ireland were being educated separately. Of every 100 young people, 92 are being denied the opportunity to learn together. In 2010, I made a speech at Stormont through our education committee and told the members that I believed the time was right for a fully integrated system of education. I still do, but I respect parental choice. The fact is, however, that parental choice is being denied. It is void and hollow for many people in Northern Ireland. Underfunded and oversubscribed integrated schools as well as vast areas across Northern Ireland which have no integrated option is a situation which is, frankly, unacceptable.

I place the blame for this firmly at the feet of those who are failing to implement the Good Friday Agreement and a framework for the peaceful, equal Northern Ireland that 75% of the population pledged to support. Not all young people are going to be world leaders, doctors or teachers, but we are all going out into a very diverse 21st century. Integrated education gives us a helping hand. Mahatma Gandhi said that if we wanted world peace, we should start educating children. Jake Proctor says, "If we want progress in Northern Ireland, we need to start educating children together". The assumption is true that children learn better in a place where they are fully accepted. At age 12, I very much fitted the Protestant working class underachieving schoolboy stereotype. I had failed my 11 plus and no one had high hopes for me. Strangford College transformed Jake Proctor. It accepted me and in the space of five years, I fell in love with school again. I was in the top 10% in Northern Ireland at key stage 3 level. I got first place in Northern Ireland in GCSE business studies, and I got three As at AS level, including 100% in two subjects with a similar outcome expected in August. Working in an open, honest, caring environment has helped me and I feel I have excelled in integrated education. I have found a new confidence and belief in myself.

I hope a time comes in Northern Ireland when educating children together will be the norm and not the exception. We all need to work together to achieve this. We have the framework as integrated schools exist and we have organisations like NICIE and the IEF here for support. We clearly have the interest as existing integrated schools are oversubscribed while many controlled and maintained primary and secondary schools in Northern Ireland are showing interest in joining the integrated movement. Yes, there are problems and barriers, but let us leap them. In five years, when I hopefully re-enter education as a history teacher, I will want to work in an integrated school. I want to send my kids to an integrated school. For the sake not only of my kids but of all our young people and future generations, let us leap the barriers and solve the problems. We have ignored article 64 for 17 years. Let us not leave it any longer.