JIS: Young persons are being encouraged to pursue studies that will enable them to take advantage of the myriad career options in the geosciences.

 

Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Transport and Mining, Dr. Alwin Hales, said career prospects are strong in this field, which has the potential for further growth and innovation.

 

“There are many careers involved in the mining industry, including scientists, engineers, geologists, surveyors, drillers, material specialists, information and communications technology professionals, power plant operators and management teams,” he said.

 

Dr. Hales was speaking at the launch of the Mines and Geology Division’s Geoscience School Tour, on Monday (April 30) at its Hope Gardens location in St. Andrew.

 

The Permanent Secretary noted that there is a great demand for geologists in particular, given the current shortage of such professionals in the exploration industry globally.

 

“A current demographic profile of senior geologists shows that there will be opportunities to attain senior positions for those entering the industry in the near future,” he said.

 

In the meantime, the Permanent Secretary said the school tour will encourage youth to “dig up” a career in the industry that researches, studies, extracts and transforms natural resources into energy sources and the materials needed for the manufacturing industries.

 

“The (Mining) Ministry, through the Mines and Geology Division, wants to bring to the forefront of young minds, the possibilities that exist in pursuing a career in the minerals industry,” he said.

 

He noted that the mining sector directly creates more than 2,000 jobs across the country in mineral extraction, production and manufacturing, and indirectly employs over 8,750 persons.

 

For her part, Country Coordinator for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Ruth Clarke, also encouraged the pursuit of a career in the mining industry, pointing to areas of mineral management and mineral studies.

 

“Statistics show that in 50 years’ time, in 2068, we would’ve used five times more mineral resources than we would’ve used since 2000. People want resources and so you will need persons who are skilled and trained who can help you to manage the resources,” she said.

 

Ms. Clarke, who noted that she has been in the field for more than 30 years, called on girls in particular to get involved in the industry, lamenting that there is only 12 per cent of women in mining.

 

“Most people feel that it’s a profession for men…but we are seeing changes, and we have a number of geologists who are female,” she said.

 

The Geoscience School Tour, which is the second in the series, will get under way in Portland today (May 1).

 

Through the tour, the Mines and Geology Division provides information to schools on the island’s geology, and makes presentations on careers in the geosciences field.

 

The Division, which is part of the Ministry, has the statutory responsibility under the Mining Act and the Quarries Control Act to exercise general supervision over all prospecting, mining and quarrying operations throughout the island. It also manages the investigation, characterisation, documentation and release information on all aspects of the geology of Jamaica.

 

CAPTION: Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Transport and Mining, Dr. Alwin Hales (left), listens to a point being raised by Senior Geologist, Mines and Geology Division, Rockey Wood (right), at the launch of the Mines and Geology Division’s Geoscience School Tour on Monday (April 30) at its Hope Gardens location in St. Andrew. Also listening (from second left) are Student of Wolmer’s Girls’ School, Iyanla Reid; Acting Commissioner of Mines, Leighton Williams; Country Coordinator, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Ruth Clarke; and Student of Papine High School, Daniel Knight.

JIS: Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid, has called on students who intend to pursue tertiary-level education at universities in Jamaica to plan for their tuition fees and to enrol in the Jamaica Values and Attitudes (JAMVAT) programme for tertiary students.

 

Responding to a recent press release from the Guild of Students, University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona, which called for support from the Ministry for students who currently have outstanding fees to be granted permission to sit their final examinations in May, Senator Reid said many of these students have not taken advantage of the opportunity presented by JAMVAT.

 

The Minister was speaking at a press briefing at the Ministry on April 30 when he addressed the issue.

 

“The JAMVAT programme is ‘voluntary/supported’, where as part of contributing 200 hours of voluntary service, the Government will commit to fund up to $350,000 in tuition fees. What happened (in 2017) is that those students who were challenged in finalising, did not apply for any of these particular facilities. Nonetheless, the Government, last year, did indicate it would intervene in the matter, which we did, and we had robust discussions with all the universities and we came to an agreement,” he noted.

 

Senator Reid said the Ministry committed to pay a maximum of $45 million for tuition fees on behalf of 329 students, and a Service Level Agreement (SLA) was signed by the Ministry, the UWI and the Students’ Loan Bureau.

 

In addition to this, based on a Cabinet Decision, students who benefited from $100,000 or less were required to perform community service, which was administered through JAMVAT.

 

Approximately 225 students fell in this category, of which $9 million was paid.

 

Senator Reid said that a team from the Ministry will be meeting with the students and the UWI administration to review the agreement signed last year.

 

He said while the Ministry is willing to assist the students in whatever way it can, “we must all be mindful that students have a personal responsibility to create a plan towards paying for the completion of their degree… and that the UWI has its responsibilities and obligations to meet as well”.

 

“We were in Barbados on Friday (April 27) dealing with matters relating to the University Council, of which the finances of the University of the West Indies were high on the agenda. The matter is so critical that we will have to reconvene and have a special meeting dealing with the overall funding of the University of the West Indies and a revision of its funding policy,” he added.

 

He further noted that all the Governments of the region are at one with the current funding model being revised.

 

“What we are committed to is to ensure that students across the region are not disenfranchised. The Government will do all it can to assist the students who wish to pursue higher education,” the Minister said.

 

CAPTION: Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid, addresses a press conference at the Ministry on Monday (April 30).

JIS: Boys at the Bog Walk High School in St. Catherine are being impacted positively by the ‘Boys Big-Up Programme’, which awards them for displaying good deportment at all times.

 

Conceptualiser of the initiative, Head of the Language Department at the school, Elaine Reid, tells JIS News that Bog Walk High currently has more boys than girls.

 

“We found that we had a number of boys with challenges, whether it’s reading, or everyday issues that boys face, some of them more than the others. I was thinking what we could do to help these boys, those who are conforming and those who are not,” she says.

 

“The idea came from what I saw. The Mayor in Florida, she was awarding 1,000 young men who are having challenges, and it just came to me that maybe we could do that at Bog Walk. So, I came up with the 100 boys being awarded for good behaviour, conduct and that sort of thing,” Ms. Reid adds.

 

The programme was started in February, when some 100 boys were presented with medals for good behaviour. They were then treated to brunch at a restaurant in the community. The students were recommended by their teachers.

 

“Since then, some of the boys have been saying, Miss, I have been keeping my pants on my waist, [so] when am I going to be awarded? So, it has served its purpose; the boys are doing very well,” Ms. Reid says.

 

She informs JIS News that the programme has two main aims – to have the boys who are conforming feel good about what they are doing; and to encourage the boys who are not, to do better.

 

Ms. Reid notes that the institution is seeking to improve on the programme for the 2018/19 school year.

 

“We want to, maybe, award scholarships, not necessarily to all the boys, but certainly a top boy. It’s like a brotherhood we have started, as these boys begin to work with other boys. In addition, we are looking at having ‘Focus Tuesdays’, where we look at issues that boys have and have them talking during the first half hour of lunch time. Also incentives… . We want to start with a dinner for a boy and his parents to just keep the momentum going,” she says.

 

Principal of Bog Walk High School, Patrick Phillips, says the initiative seeks to create a culture of excellence at the institution, especially among boys.

 

“When we look at our society, a lot of the misdemeanour is alleged to be perpetuated by our males. And so we want to say to our boys, you are valuable, you can be positive, and you can make something of yourselves,” he tells JIS News.

 

He adds that sometimes, bad behaviour is “rewarded” in the education system, due to the focus being placed on it.

 

“So, a boy who is giving problems is called on all the while and is focused on. The ones who are doing well are not noticed, so we are saying that not only are we going to try to have our intervention programme for the ones who are not doing well, Recipient of a medal, Tyrone Blake, says he feels very pleased to have been awarded.

 

“It is like a motivator, it drives us to continue the hard work,” Tyrone tells JIS News.

 

For his part, Head Boy at Bog Walk High School, Dewayne White, says that being an awardee of the programme has resulted in a great deal of personal improvement.

 

“It serves as a motivational factor among the boys at school, and being an awardee allows me to have an impact on them, so they would look up to me as an example,” Dewayne adds.

 

As part of their reward, the boys were able to meet Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, during a courtesy call on April 25 at Jamaica House.

 

At the event, he encouraged the boys to be disciplined, while encouraging them to see themselves as leaders.

 

“I am very happy to see that Bog Walk is doing its part to ensure that its male population is graduating the education system with a certain level of refinement and a certain level of understanding of the importance of values that make the society work,” he said.

 

Meanwhile, State Minister in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green, says that, normally, focus is placed on negative behaviour, “not recognising when you award positive behaviour, you influence others to do well”.

 

“I think you are on to something very good at Bog Walk High, and it ties in with some of the messages that we have been sending across the education system,” Mr. Green notes.

 

CAPTION: Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness (front, centre); Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid (second right); State Minister in the Ministry, Hon. Floyd Green (second left) and Principal of Bog Walk High School, Patrick Phillips (third left), with students and administrators of the Bog Walk High School in St. Catherine who are participants in the institution’s ‘Boys Big-Up Programme’, at Jamaica House on April 25.

JIS: The Spanish-Jamaican Foundation has provided $1,491,375 to cover the cost for 1,025 students to sit their upcoming Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) Spanish oral examinations.

 

The students are from schools in regions three and four of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information.

 

Portfolio Minister, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid, who accepted the cheque from Spanish Ambassador, Josep Bosch Bessa, at the Ministry’s National Heroes Circle offices on Monday (April 30), expressed gratitude to the Spanish-Jamaican Foundation for sponsoring students for a fourth consecutive year.

 

“The Spanish-Jamaican Foundation, certainly, has been an organisation that has been extremely supportive of our foreign-language programmes,” he said.

 

“The overall support for the country has been outstanding. This is another demonstration of that commitment,” he added.

 

Minister Reid noted that the students who will benefit reside in communities that are in proximity to Spanish-owned hotels, which serve a large number of the tourists who visit Jamaica annually.

 

As potential future employees of these hotels, he said it is important for the students to have competencies in both English and Spanish.

 

Additionally, he pointed out that Jamaica is surrounded by numerous Spanish-speaking countries that are open to trade, and interpreters are needed to make the connections.

 

“It is important, I believe, that we are competent and fluent in the speaking of the Spanish language, because there are so many trade opportunities with Latin America and Spain,” he said.

 

“This, what you are doing here, is an investment in Jamaica’s long-term development, ensuring that Jamaica can participate in this globalised economy. This is an outstanding contribution and investment in the education and empowerment and people of Jamaica,” he added.

 

In his remarks, Ambassador Bessa said that if more Jamaicans become competent in Spanish, this could boost the country’s tourism sector.

 

“Spanish language is very important. If you look at the tourism industry, Spanish is a leading partner. For many of the Jamaicans trying to get a better opportunity with jobs in the sector, Spanish will become, more and more, an important tool, because the tourists will have to move from one destination to another [and there will be the need for communication],” Mr. Bessa said.

 

“There are many economic and trade [opportunities] depending on your ability. Spanish means jobs, Spanish means opportunities, business, and I think it’s a very wise decision to become a bilingual country,” he said.

 

CAPTION: Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid (second right), accepts a cheque for $1,491,375 from Spanish Ambassador to Jamaica, Josep Bosch Bessa (second left), to cover the cost for 1,025 students to sit their upcoming Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) Spanish oral examination. The presentation was made on Monday (April 30), at the Ministry’s National Heroes Circle offices in Kingston. Looking on are Project Manager, Spanish-Jamaican Foundation, Vanessa Meggoe (left) and Chief Education Officer, Dr. Grace McLean

JIS: Chief Education Officer in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Dr. Grace McLean, has reaffirmed the Ministry’s commitment to reducing violence within schools.

 

Speaking at the opening ceremony for a Parent Place located at Emmanuel Chapel in Mt. Salem, St. James, on Friday, April 27, Dr. McLean said a multipronged approach is being used to tackle and reduce violence among youth.

 

This is among the strategies being implemented to stem violence in schools, and adds to the Ministry’s Change from Within programme, Peace and Love in Society (PALS), and the Violence Prevention programme.

 

Dr. McLean said the launch of the facility is in full alignment with the broad strategic objectives of the National Parenting Support Commission (NPSC) to offer proactive and reactive parenting education and support.

 

“While it is true that there are many contributing factors to teenage delinquency and other forms of social dysfunction, the role of parents in shaping the values and attitudes of our children cannot be ignored,” she emphasised.

 

She lauded the efforts of the National Education Trust (NET) and the NPSC for conceptualising the initiative.

 

For her part, Attorney General, Hon. Marlene Malahoo Forte, who is also Member of Parliament for West Central St. James, said she is pleased with the initiative, which is a move in the right direction.

 

“A lot of the challenges that we face across the island find their root causes in parenting issues. Children who have been taught well, who have been inculcated with good values, who learn good manners at an early stage, show up in life behaving better, and many times are outside of the criminal justice system,” she said.

 

The Attorney General said the centre will provide that physical space where parents can learn from each other and accomplish the work that needs to be done.

 

In 2017, the NET secured a US$3-million grant to fund initiatives aimed at violence reduction among youth. The project forms part of the USAID/Ministry of Education partnership for improved safety and security in schools, which is intended to reduce antisocial behaviour among youth and reduce the ability of criminal elements gaining access to school premises.

 

The Parent Place in Mt. Salem is the first of 12 to be launched across the island and will operate as a hub for community care groups to make parenting information and training available. Through these groups, the NPSC will ensure early detection of parental issues and facilitate referrals for families deemed at-risk.

 

CAPTION: Attorney General, Hon. Marlene Malahoo Forte (fourth left), at the unveiling of a sign at the opening of Parent Place at the Emmanuel Chapel in Mt. Salem, St. James, on Friday, April 27. Also at the ceremony were (from left): Chief Executive Officer, National Parenting Support Commission, Kaysia Kerr; His Worship the Mayor of Montego Bay, Councillor Homer Davis; Acting Mission Director, USAID, Andrew Colburn; Managing Director, National Education Trust, Marcia Phillips-Dawkins; Chief Education Officer, Dr. Grace McLean; and Councillor of the Mount Salem Division, Kerry Thomas.

OBSERVER: THE Ministry of Education (MOE) says the greater emphasis placed on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) in the National Standards Curriculum is deliberate and aims to rebrand the technical and vocational areas.

 

“STEM was used as one of the philosophical underpinnings for the development of the curriculum. We looked at what was happening in other countries and utilised a similar approach. So the whole aspect of project-based learning is infused in the curriculum where the students are actually learning the fundamentals of science,” said Dr Grace McLean, chief education officer.

 

She was speaking to reporters and editors at last week’s Jamaica Observer Monday Exchange.

 

In relation to the progress of a STEM -based curriculum, Dr McLean said the MOE, since 2014, has been doing the integration and infusion of STEM in the education system, wherein eight secondary level institutions were identified as pilot in the curriculum’s development, which ensured that the STEM underpinnings were included right through to grade nine.

 

“Having completed the curriculum for the implementation, and we are sure that our students, after leaving the primary level, would have those basic competencies that are needed between grades seven to nine, through our resource and technology, which is what we use to infuse TVET (Technical and Vocational Education and Training) as well as STEM, the curriculum would be advanced further,” she said.

 

Additionally, she said the MOE is in talks with external examination providers — Caribbean Examinations Council, City and Guilds and the National Council on Vocational, Education and Training — to ensure that they are now introducing project-based learning and the infusion of STEM in the curriculum.

 

“STEM is an effective way of rebranding our technical and vocational programmes. For example, if you have a table to be built, outside of those who look at the board and ensure the joints are aligned, there is another side behind it where you now have to do the research to ensure that the kind of glue that you utilise has the correct kind of materials to ensure that when it is placed on the joints for you to put it together, it will stick and last for many, many years. That’s STEM at work…it assists in rebranding how TVET actually works,” Dr McLean said.

 

Further, Dr McLean said the MOE has also taken an approach to providing greater support for students going to universities to do engineering skills, ICT and other STEM-based studies.

 

“These are the areas to use for innovation to plug back into the system. We are at a good place based on what we started a couple years ago and over time we will continue to see the implementation,” Dr McLean said.

 

CAPTION: Chief Education Officer, Ministry of Education,  Youth and Information Dr. Grace McLean.

OBSERVER: COME September, the Ministry of Education (MOE) will formally institutionalise a full seven-year high school programme.

 

Speaking to reporters and editors at last week’s Jamaica Observer Monday Exchange, chief education officer Dr Grace McLean said this will be done through the implementation of the Career Advancement Programme across high schools, 67 private institutions, community colleges, and teachers’ colleges.

 

According to Dr McLean, this will see 20,000 students utilising different modalities being added to the 12,000 that matriculate to the traditional sixth form. These students will also leave school with an associate degree, complete tertiary education in shorter times, and subsequently increase the 18 per cent of tertiary graduates locally.

 

This move, Dr McLean said, models the education system in Finland. At the secondary level, she explained that the first five years of a child’s education will focus on equipping them with the fundamental skills required for the general curriculum, then specialisation begins at grades 12 and 13.

 

“At the high school level there is a general education system up to age 16 then they move into areas like vocation, Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), and arts. They develop basic educational principles before moving into specialisation and we have started to adopt some elements of that system,” Dr McLean said.

 

“Having decided to formalise fully and provide opportunities at grades 12 and 13, means that in the first five years we can focus on ensuring that the students now have all the fundamental skills required as it relates to the general curriculum, and then in grades 12 and 13 they can now do the specialisation to complete with an associate degree which is an associate occupational degree, currently being rolled out in the TVET (Technical and Vocational Education and Training) and STEM areas, or an associate degree at Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE),” she said.

 

The chief education officer further added that the Caribbean Examinations Council is reorganising their suite of CAPE subjects to ensure that the students at the end of grade 13, in each cluster, will have 60 credits tenable at tertiary institutions.

“We are now currently doing the consultations to ensure that the universities will accept these 60 credits, give the students the exemption, and they move on to the other areas,” she said.

 

And changes are also coming at the early childhood and primary levels.

 

“At the early childhood level we are now moving into supporting day-care centres — 126 day-care centres funded by the Government for parents below the poverty line to see how we can get to provide the basics they need for their children from ages zero to three.

 

“In primary schools, while we are not able to have one teacher right through (the Finnish system ensures that at the primary level one teacher takes the students through the six grades to become familiar with them and build on their weaknesses), we are now moving into specialised mathematics and science teachers at that level which we will be piloting this year in about 35 schools. All primary school teachers are generalists, they teach all the subjects, so these specialists will be providing direct support to assist the students in the weak areas.”

 

Dr McLean added that the MOE is ensuring that the Finnish model is adapted to our cultural context, and completely applicable to the Jamaican environment.

 

CAPTION: Chief Education Officer, Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Dr. Grace McLean.

OBSERVER: THE special education policy being formulated by the Ministry of Education (MOE) is expected to be ready for implementation in September.

 

Dr Grace McLean, chief education officer in the MOE, told reporters and editors at last week’s Jamaica Observer Monday Exchange that the special education policy is going through the process to be sent to Cabinet for approval, which is expected in short order.

 

“There’s just one stage of another ministry it has to pass through before it goes on to Cabinet for approval and we expect that this will be done within the next three months or so and be ready for roll-out in September,” she said.

 

In relation to special needs, Dr McLean said the ministry spends a significant amount of money — close to $250 million annually for special education.

 

“We purchase spaces in schools which provide the specialised setting, the equipment and material for students with varying levels of special needs, especially for those who have the severe special needs and in some cases the moderate. We place them in the specialised settings,” she said.

 

She added: “The ministry also has about 35 centres that are part of our establishments where students are also placed. In addition to that, in selected institutions we have what we call a pull-out centre where for those who have some kind of mild special needs, we allow them to be supported in those institutions.”

 

But she said when the policy comes on stream, more schools will have to ensure they are inclusive to the needs of special education students.

 

Dr McLean further made an appeal to the public and stakeholders to understand that these children are the vulnerable among us and we must ensure that the duty of care is exercised for them.

 

“They are not going away, and we don’t want them to go away. We want to identify them early and start treating before it becomes chronic. While they are with us we have to find a way to ensure we exercise the duty of care and I’ll appeal to persons to report inadequacies and for parents not to hide these children when you realise they will need special care,” she said.

 

“Where there are inadequacies, bring them to our attention and we will do the necessary investigations and ensure the child is maximising his or her potential.”

 

Dr McLean added that the ministry has a full special education unit, which parents of special needs children should utilise.

 

— Kimberley Hibbert

 

CAPTION: Dr Grace McLean, Chief Education Officer, Ministry of Education, Youth and Information

JIS: Her Excellency, the Most Hon. Lady Allen, officially launched the 2018 staging of the ‘Western Union I Pledge (Reading) Programme’ on April 27, at King’s House.

 

The objective of the programme, launched for the 12th  consecutive year,  is to promote and encourage the nation’s youth in each parish to continuously read for their individual growth and development.

 

Activities of the programme will take place in numerous schools across the island during the month of May, when Jamaica celebrates Child Month, Education Week and Read Across Jamaica Day on May 8.

 

In her remarks at the launch, Lady Allen, who was a teacher for 18 years, reiterated that reading should always be considered as important for the development of each youth in the  country, and it is through reading that good leadership skills are developed.

 

“I learnt long ago, a little gem that says ‘One who reads, leads’. Books can give you counsel and wisdom when you need it most. Through history, biographies of remarkable men and women tell us that most of them became great because of the inspiration they got from reading books, especially during their childhood days,” Lady Allen said.

 

She added that the 2018 theme of the programme: ‘Winning with Reading’ captures the essence of the gem.

 

“It also speaks to how reading can inspire, empower and boost one’s confidence to achieve greatness,” she said.

 

The 2018 staging of the Western Union I Pledge (Reading) Programme will include a new social media aspect for participants to read to children and make posts of the activity with images and videos on their social media pages, and then tag others to do the same.

 

Lady Allen said she is pleased to witness technology being incorporated in the Programme, in addition to its previous initiatives of face-to-face reading with youth, and competitions.

 

“The constant evolution of technology has influenced the way children read. Now, they can do so with the use of audio books and electronic books, which are available on electronic devices,”  she said.

 

“Although technology has changed the way we read, the ability it has to inspire and provide knowledge is unchanging,” Lady Allen added.

 

For her part, Chief Executive Officer, GraceKennedy Money Services, Ms. Michelle Allen, said her organization,  title sponsor of the Western Union I Pledge (Reading) Programme, is  pleased to  satisfy the requests to have social media incorporated in the programme.

 

“The social media campaign to this programme is very exciting for me… We’re going to ask you [participants and members of the public during the month of May] to do two things. You’re going to  challenge someone, as the bucket challenge, to read to a child or children for 30 minutes. We’re then going to ask you to post and tag on your favourite social media handle, using the hashtags #GKMSOnline and #IPLedge2018 or #GKMSIPledge,” Ms. Allen said.

 

“So, challenge someone to nominate another to keep the reading going, so Reading Week will not last one week [in May], but instead it will last one month,” she said.

 

CAPTION: Her Excellency, the Most Hon. Lady Allen (left), reads to children at King’s House on Friday (April 27), after launching the 2018 Western Union’s I Pledge (Reading) Programme.

JIS: The Education, Youth and Information Ministry will introduce a mentorship programme later this year to guide youth exiting State care.

 

Education Minister of State, Hon. Floyd Green, said these youth will be peered with mentors, who will receive ideas from them and, in turn, provide them with feedback.

 

Mr. Green was speaking at the third staging of the Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA) National Exiting Care Expo, at the Jamaica Conference Centre in downtown Kingston on April 26.

 

Noting that a few mentors have already been chosen for the programme, Mr. Green appealed to corporate Jamaica for support by organising their staff into mentorship groupings to assist the children.

 

“Additionally, I believe (this) is a great opportunity to work with our universities (and) other tertiary centres to use their tertiary students to help us develop a mentorship corps to work with our children who are transitioning,” he said.

 

The State Minister assured the 600-odd students in family integration and residential childcare facilities that their progress will be tracked.

 

“Even though a number of you are leaving State care, we do not want you to believe that you have left the family. Despite the difficulties and experiences, we stand here as a family to support you and to provide guidance and to work with you to ensure that you are successful in life,” he said.

 

Mr. Green charged the students to set goals and “write down the steps you will take to achieve your dream, as writing down your dreams works”.

 

Meanwhile, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the CPFSA, Rosalee Gage-Grey, said that her agency believes in the holistic development of the children in its care.

 

She said the purpose of the Expo was to ensure that the children “have a solid foundation as they transition into independent living”.

 

“We (also) want you to be confident about your preparation for independent living. We know that some of you are facing this reality with anxiety and great expectations, and we want to ensure that where there is doubt, we erase that, and where there are fears and anxiety, we will prepare you for taking the next step,” she said.

 

Held under the theme ‘Inspire. Succeed. Win’, the National Exiting Care Expo targets those between ages 17 and 18 for independent living.

 

During the course of the one-day event, the youngsters were exposed to a variety of services from several organisations, as well as information on career planning, self-development, financial management, health and lifestyle and living arrangements, as they transition from State care to adulthood.

 

CAPTION: State Minister for Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green (centre), converses with Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA), Rosalee Gage-Grey (left), at the agency’s National Exiting Care Expo held at the Jamaica Conference Centre in downtown Kingston on April 26. At right is Executive Assistant at the CPFSA, Deverline Burrell Wallen.