JIS: There is strong support for the renovated Muirton Child Care Facility in Portland from community members and other stakeholders.

 

Located in Manchioneal, the Government-run facility caters to boys aged 11 to 18 years who have learning challenges.

 

Through the ‘Friends of Muirton’, initiated by the institution’s Manager, Chances Walker, to make it a “model facility for lifting up people with special needs”, the individuals are offering help in security, fundraising and mentoring.

 

Member of the group, Maxine Palmer, who is also a former Manager of the home, says she is “pleased” with the upgrading work, and they will be working to get additional furniture and funds, “so I will be lending my services in that area”

 

Head of the Portland police, Superintendent Duane Wellington, says “we are grateful for this partnership”, and the Community Safety and Security Branch in the parish will be providing critical support to the home.

 

Jeffrey Grant, who is a lecturer at the College of Agriculture, Science and Education (CASE), in the parish, says he is giving time to the facility, because “I want to see the boys uplifted and enjoy the time they spend there”.

 

Mr. Grant is inviting other persons to do the same, as the boys should be given every opportunity to contribute to society.

 

Meanwhile, the Manager describes the outreach partnership with the Friends of Muirton as a “strong alliance” with a small group of influential professionals “with tangible links to the diaspora” who are willing to assist and provide needed services.

 

She says a Facebook page will be set up as a means through which interested persons can get information on the facility. “This will also help to build awareness about some of the great things that will be happening here at Muirton,” Miss Walker tells JIS News.

 

Minister of State in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green, who opened the renovated home recently, said the facility represents the direction of his Ministry to provide the best possible care for children with special needs.

 

“It is important that we put in the resources to ensure that our children with mild disabilities are placed in quality homes, with the right amenities, so that they will be fully functional and live up to their full potential,” the State Minister said.

 

While inviting the community to support the facility, Mr. Green said the Government is very strategic in how “we deliver quality care to the most vulnerable of our children”.

 

For her part, Chief Executive Officer of the Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA), Rosalee Gage-Grey, said the agency is encouraging communities to support children in State care.

 

“Reach out to our caregivers, and ask how you can help,” she said.

 

Director of Children and Family Programmes at the CPFSA, Audrey Budhi, said the boys will be getting transformational support to develop their social and entrepreneurial capabilities in agriculture, computer science and the arts.

 

She added that with such diverse skills and support, the boys will have a bright future.

 

“Whatever we do will mean the world to these children. Help our youngsters grow and develop and you will make a difference in their young lives. Just changing one child, one day at a time, you can make the difference,” the Director said.

 

Member of Parliament for East Portland, Dr. Lyndale Bloomfield, said the services now offered by the home make him “gratefully pleased”, and children from the community and elsewhere who require the services, are now very protected.

 

Up to 30 boys can be housed at the facility, which is geared at providing them with rounded skills and education. It is situated on 29 acres of land and has five dormitories, staff quarters, a section for counselling, a classroom, a computer laboratory and a recreational area.

 

CAPTION: Minister of State in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green (third left), and Chief Executive Officer of the Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA), Roalee Gage-Grey (second left), cut the ribbon to officially open the renovated Portland-based Muirton Child Care Facility. Also pictured (from left) are Manager of the home, Chances Walker, and Member of Parliament for East Portland, Dr. Lyndale Bloomfield.

JIS: The Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA) has received approximately $6 million towards the rebuilding of the Walker’s Place of Safety in Kingston, which was destroyed by fire earlier this year.

 

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the agency, Rosalee Gage-Grey, made the disclosure to JIS News on Monday (March 19), following the presentation of a cheque valued at $100,000 by the St. Catherine High School at the agency’s Duke Street office in downtown Kingston.

 

She informed that a technical team has been set up by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information to oversee the rebuilding exercise.

 

“The plan is to rebuild at the same location…we are working to get the estimates, so that we can share with our partners, who have offered to give some contribution,” she said.

 

She said it is hoped that construction will be completed by the end of the year.

 

The new facility, which will house no more than 30 residents, will also have counselling rooms and a play room, among other amenities. “It will have the full gamut; state-of-the-art,” Mrs. Gage-Grey added.

 

The donation from St. Catherine High School also included 12 boxes of clothes, books and toys. The institution is the latest contributor to the rebuilding of the Walker’s Place of Safety and the welfare of the former residents.

 

Mrs. Gage-Grey said that while cash contributions will offset the rebuilding costs, all donations are welcome.

 

“Because we are focusing on the rebuilding efforts, we wouldn’t mind contributions in cash, but there is always the need for care items, non-perishable items because we also share with other facilities and families who have been affected. We have our Children and Family Care and Support Unit and we have been able to share some of what we have received with them as well, and so whatever contributions will be well received,” she said.

 

In the meantime, Mrs. Gage-Grey said the agency will shortly roll out a programme focusing on the needs of all childcare facilities.

 

She informed that further details will be provided by the Minister of State in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green.

 

The donation from the St. Catherine High School falls under the Love Care Project, which was organised by the peer counsellors at the institution.

 

Ms. Gage-Grey lauded the students for giving back. “We have seen a number of schools that have come together to collect donations for the children at Walker’s and we find that very heartening to know that children see the need to give back, and we are quite appreciative of that,” she said.

 

A massive fire at the Lyndhurst Crescent location of the Walker’s Place of Safety on January 15 claimed the lives of two children and destroyed the facility.

 

The 34 wards who were displaced are now being housed at other residential facilities, and Mrs. Gage-Grey said they are adjusting to the new locations.

 

“They are going back to school. We have been having a number of sessions with them, and other persons have contributed in kind, whether it’s a movie day or going to a hotel, and that has been helping in the (healing) process,” she pointed out.

 

CAPTION: Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA), Rosalee Gage-Grey (right), receives a cheque valued at $100,000 from President of the St. Catherine High School Peer Counsellor Group, Jaunel Johnson (second right), towards the rebuilding of the Walker’s Place of Safety in Kingston. Sharing the moment (from left) are guidance counsellors Kemar Hayden, Olivette Douglas Halstead, and Rosie McLeggon Hinds; and peer counsellors Breanna Grant, Brianna Powell and Tevonie Pearce. The cheque and 12 boxes comprising clothes, books and toys were donated under the Love Care Project, which was organised by the peer counsellors at the school. The handover took place at the CPFSA’s downtown Kingston offices on Monday (March 19).

JIS: Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, has announced that the National Unattached Youth Programme will now be absorbed under the Housing, Opportunity, Production and Employment (HOPE) project, targeting a total of 12,600 youth across Jamaica in the 2018/2019 fiscal year.

 

Making his contribution to the 2018/2019 Budget Debate in the House of Representatives on Tuesday (March 20), Mr. Holness said the move will double the number of young people engaged.

 

“We will engage 200 per constituency, targeting a total of 12,600 young people to be now attached and contributing to the productivity of our nation,” he noted.

 

Also under HOPE, 500 young people will be placed at the Ministry of Health in the Vector Control Corps and Medical Assistant Corps and 6,000 placed across ministries, departments and agencies in the Documentation and Digitisation Corps in keeping with the policy of digitising government.

 

In addition, 1,000 interns will be placed at the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries as part of the Verification and Audit Corps, to conduct surveys and registration and to ensure the accuracy of the farmer and agriculture database; and over 1,000 young people will be deployed in the Hospitality Service Corps and the Transportation Cadet Corps across various projects.

 

“All ministries are on board and budgetary allocations made accordingly to ensure that adequate funding is in place. In addition, HOPE has secured $60 million through the Development Bank of Jamaica to increase training and placement islandwide,” Mr. Holness said.

 

He noted, further, that the Jamaica Information Service (JIS) has benefited from more than $28 million from the CHASE Fund to digitise its archives, which contain video footage, photographs and audio files compiled over decades.

 

This project will employ persons from the HOPE programme, who will be trained in media archive management skills and intellectual property management.

 

“The exposure given to young people under the HOPE project allows them to build life skills and the positive attitudes of good citizens. We want to maximise the potential of all our young people and provide opportunities for them to self-actualise,” Mr. Holness said.

 

He added, “It is the intention of the Government to provide more opportunities to set our young people on the path to achieving prosperity. Now, more than ever, more unattached youth are being engaged in meaningful ways and increasing their productivity.”

 

HOPE is the flagship social intervention and support programme of the Government.

 

It focuses on targeted assistance with housing, education, training and economic opportunities, support for persons in productive activities in communities and engagement towards sustained employment.

 

A critical strategy of the HOPE programme is the engagement of unattached youth through a system of apprenticeship and national service called LEGS, which involves learning and earning while giving service and saving.

 

CAPTION: Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness (at podium), emphasises a point while making his contribution to the 2018 Budget Debate in the House of Representatives on Tuesday (March 20). Pictured in the background, is the Prime Minister’s wife and Member of Parliament for East Rural St. Andrew, the Most Hon. Juliet Holness.

JIS: Shortwood Teachers’ College has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) for the provision of a specialist lecturer in Spanish to bolster the College’s Foreign Languages Department.

 

The lecturer, who is a native of Spain, is slated to commence duties in the 2018/19 academic year, and will be assigned to the College for three years.

 

Under the MoU’s tenets, the Government of Spain will cover the lecturer’s monthly salary and transportation costs. The College will provide accommodation and a stipend to complement the salary.

 

Proposed cultural activities to be organized by the lecturer in collaboration with the College and the Embassy of Spain in Jamaica are also part of the MoU’s provisions.

 

The undertaking aims to support the Government’s goal of encouraging more Jamaicans to learn Spanish, by boosting their exposure to the language.

 

Education, Youth and Information Minister, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid; Spain’s Ambassador to Jamaica, His Excellency Josep Maria Bosch Bessa; and College Principal, Dr. Christopher Clarke, signed the MoU during a ceremony at the institution’s Shortwood Road campus in St. Andrew, on March 15.

 

Senator Reid said a key objective of the MoU is strengthening educators’ capacity to teach Spanish, particularly at the early childhood level.

 

He argued that fulfilling this goal is contingent on the availability and deployment of sufficient cadre of adequately trained teachers of Spanish in the system.

 

The Minister also described the collaboration as an important first step to Jamaica becoming multi-lingual.

 

“Jamaica needs to empower our human resources so that we can become a multi-lingual nation and compete in all areas of trade internationally,” he said.

 

 Noting that several neighbouring countries, including Cuba and Hispaniola, are predominantly Spanish speaking nations, Senator Reid said the partnership will assist in reducing communication barriers with these and other territories and boosting trade, among other engagements.

 

“There are over 800 million Spanish speaking (people in) countries in the Western hemisphere that we do very little trade with. The potential (benefit of these markets for Jamaica) in terms of tourism and bi-lateral trade… is significant,” he pointed out.

 

Senator Reid said the MoU forged is another signal of the “close ties between our countries.”

 

“Spanish is the international language of business trade, commerce and industry. This initiative will benefit the Shortwood Teachers’ College and by extension, our education system immensely,” he added.

 

Meanwhile, Ambassador Bosch Bessa said Spain stands ready to assist in the development of Spanish as a second language in Jamaica.

 

Noting Jamaica’s strategic location in proximity to the main shipping lanes between the Far East, Europe and North America, as well as to trade and air routes spanning the Americas, Europe and the Caribbean, he said making Spanish one of the main languages in Jamaica will create more opportunities to expand into diverse trade markets.

 

“Your geographical position makes you a natural bridge between Latin and North America… between Spanish and English speaking countries. You have the possibility of becoming the logistics and communications hub of the Caribbean,” the Ambassador stated.

 

CAPTION: Education, Youth and Information Minister, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid (left), signs the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) forged between the Shortwood Teachers College and the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) for the provision of a specialist Spanish lecturer for the institution. Also signing are College Principal, Dr. Christopher Clarke (centre); and Spain’s Ambassador to Jamaica, His Excellency Josep Maria Bosch Bessa (right). Looking on is Senior Lecturer in the College’s Modern Languages Department, Aracelis Duffus-Anedu. The signing ceremony was held at the College’s Shortwood Road campus in St. Andrew on March 15.

JIS: After losing both her parents in quick succession, Maxine Williamson found herself in an interesting situation.

 

The two children that her parents fostered had suddenly become her responsibility. Rather than having them return to the residential-care system, Ms. Williamson, who was living in Canada at the time, decided to return to Jamaica to take care of the children.

 

“I left my corporate job in Canada and came to Jamaica ‘cold turkey’, because I really wanted to provide a home for these children,” she tells JIS News.

 

She says that because she was not the original foster-parent, she had to go through an evaluation process with the then Child Development Agency now Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA) to determine her suitability.

 

“I was so nervous,” she recalls. “However, they interviewed me, did their background checks and told me everything is in order. Today, I am the proud parent of two beautiful foster children,” she boasts.

 

Ms. Williamson says she has no regrets in making the decision to become a foster-parent.

 

“Persons were saying that the children were so lucky to have me, but for me, it was the other way around; I was so lucky to have them. They helped me heal after the death of my parents; we found solace in each other. It was these foster children that saved me from the devastating loss,” she shares with JIS News.

 

Ms. Williamson, who has been a foster-parent to 16-year-old *Sandra and 17-year-old *Javaughn for over two years now, also has two biological daughters.

 

She notes that they are “wonderful and loving children”, and after raising two girls, it was interesting to parent a boy.

 

“They call me ‘sis’ because they were used to calling my mother ‘mom’, but that has not stopped me from being an effective parent. Sandra’s academic performance has improved significantly, moving from an F student to a B+ student and she is now preparing to take her (Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) exams. I am seeing this once-shy young girl become the vice-president of a club and representing her school at events. She is now a very confident young lady,” she tells JIS News. Javaughn is also doing well in high school. “I remember him getting 100 per cent on a math test and the excitement and joy when he was showing it to me,” she recounts.

 

Ms. Williams says Javaughn was described as someone with anger issues, but she has never seen that part of him. Instead, she says, she sees a young man working every day to become a better person.

 

She tells JIS News that her wish is for them to become great citizens, and, so far, they have surpassed her expectations. “Our family is a very loving family, and to see these two children returning hugs just warms my heart,” she says. Sandra, in relating her experience as a foster child, says that “coming from a children’s home it was a different environment, and I had to adjust and get used to having new persons in your life”.

 

“It has been a great experience so far. I now get to be part of a family, and this helps to build different aspects of my life in a positive way. I now know what it is like to live with a family of my own; it has just been great,” she shares with JIS News. Sandra wants to become an actuary, and is confident of achieving her career goal with the support of her foster family.

 

The Foster Care Programme is the CPFSA’s flagship family-based programme where wards of the State are placed in homes to be part of a family.

 

Director of Children and Family Programmes at the CPFSA, Audrey Budhi, tells JIS News that studies all across the globe show that children perform better in a family setting, as a nurturing environment is provided for the child’s physical, mental, spiritual and emotional growth and development.

 

She explains that unlike adoption, foster care does not involve the total surrender of parental rights.

 

Mrs. Budhi notes that children need personal care and attention even from the earliest stage of development.

 

“Studies have shown that when a child looks in your eyes, when you talk to him or her, that deep bond and emotional connection assists in their growth, builds self-confidence and self-awareness,” she says.

 

Mrs. Budhi is encouraging more Jamaicans to become foster-parents. She notes that there are not enough facilities to accommodate children who are in need of care and protection.

 

“If we have enough foster parents to take care of these children, then we will be assured that children, who are in need of care and protection, will be taken care of, and this is why foster care is being pushed by the CPFSA,” she points out.

 

Dwayne Haynes was placed in foster care at eight years old agrees.

 

“Every child deserves to feel special, to have somebody there for them, someone to count on, because that is what is going to make the difference between my generation going in the wrong direction or going the right path,” he tells JIS News.

 

Dwayne was placed in the State care system due to his mother’s mental illness. After learning that he was a resident at the Maxfield Park Children’s Home, his grandfather applied to the CPFSA to become his foster-parent. Dwayne is the youngest of four children for his parents and was the only one to become a ward of the State.

 

Today, the 23-year-old University of the West Indies (UWI) and St. Jago High School graduate is pursuing a Master’s Degree in Marketing and Data Analytics at UWI and is also working with the Sandals Foundation.

 

A Residence Advisor for the Irvine Hall of Residence at UWI, Dwayne has high praises for the CPFSA.

 

He tells JIS News that the agency ensured that he and his foster-parent got all the help necessary to aid in his growth and development. He, too, is encouraging more responsible Jamaicans to become foster-parents. “A lot of times, persons are skeptical about foster care, not knowing how they will deal with issues that may arise, but everything in life is a risk,” he points out.

 

“Children in State care need somebody to take care of them,” he says, noting that “I am willing to give back a lot of my time to the children’s homes”.

 

The Foster Care Programme has been operating since 2004, and as at December 2017 there were some 767 children in the programme and 800 families providing foster care.

 

Each child in foster care gets a bimonthly subvention, annual back-to-school assistance and medical support. The foster parents are exposed to training in childcare and receive certification upon completion.

 

To become a foster parent, one has to be a responsible adult between the ages of 25 and 65 years, single or a couple. Consideration is given to persons over 65 if they are in good health. Placement with a single male is only done if the applicant is related to the child, or in exceptional circumstances.

 

Interested persons must have suitable accommodations, be gainfully and consistently employed and must be willing to undergo a medical examination. When submitting their application, they must provide two references from a notary public, such as a justice of the peace or pastor; two passport-sized photographs and a police record.

 

A children’s officer will follow up with background checks and home visits to ensure that the environment in which the child will be living is up to the standard of care that the CPFSA sets out.

 

Mrs. Budhi explains that in order to ensure that the children are taken care of the CPFSA has developed 29 Standards of Care to which foster parents must adhere.

 

There are also monitoring officers who visit the foster homes and each child is assigned to a social worker, who works with the parent and child. There is zero-tolerance for breach of standards.

 

Persons who are interested in becoming a foster parent, may contact the CPFSA at 948-2841-2 or visit any of their offices islandwide for further information.

 

CAPTION: Twenty-three-year-old master’s student at the University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona, and former ward of the state, Dwayne Haynes.

JIS: The National Youth Service (NYS) is accepting applications for its HOPE Youth Summer Work Programme until April 13, 2018.

 

The programme will enable 14,000 young people to benefit from valuable work experience during the months of June, July and August.

 

The target group, aged 17 to 29 years, will be placed in various entities for a period of three weeks, where they will gain some of the necessary skills for the world of work.

 

Since last year, the programme has been rebranded in line with the Government’s initiative of the Housing, Opportunity, Production and Employment (HOPE) Programme.

 

Addressing a JIS ‘Think Tank’, on March 13, Director of Communications and Marketing at NYS, Julia Smiley Green, outlined that the programme consists of recruitment/selection, training, orientation, placement and monitoring.

 

“We go on a vigorous recruiting drive each year to ensure that we are attracting participants who not only need work experience but who also need some form of personal and professional development. So, at the beginning of the programme, each potential participant will be required to undergo an orientation that will have them trained in key employability skills that will help to make them more rounded individuals and more employable,” Mrs. Smiley Green said.

 

In addition to completing an application form, persons are required to submit copies of their birth certificate, tax registration number (TRN) and national insurance scheme (NIS) cards, national or school identification card, proof of qualification (if any) and résumé.

 

Persons may download the application form at www.heart-nta.org or www.nysjamaica.org. Once completed, the form can be dropped off at any HEART Trust/NTA, Jamaica Foundation for Lifelong Learning or National Youth Service (NYS) office.

 

“If you are an employer and has an interest in youth and corporate social responsibility, and want to help mould young lives, then we are saying to you that here is an opportunity to get someone who can contribute meaningfully to your place of work; persons that are trained, adaptable and ready to learn,” the Marketing Director said.

 

For more information, persons may call the NYS office at 754-9816-8 or send an email to: [email protected].

 

CAPTION: Director of Communications and Marketing at the National Youth Service (NYS), Julia Smiley Green, highlights the various components of the NYS HOPE Youth Summer Work Programme at a JIS ‘Think Tank’ on March 13

JIS: The National Youth Service (NYS) has expanded its Empowerment Programme to reach young people with all forms of disabilities.

 

Previously, the initiative was targeted at persons with mild intellectual disabilities but this year, it will be open to some 360 persons, aged 17 to 34, with various disabilities. Persons within this target group have until March 31 to apply.

 

The Empowerment Programme aims to provide the tools and opportunities to improve the quality of life for persons with disabilities and increase their participation in and contribution to society by strengthening their capacities and improving their preparation for the labour force.

 

Speaking at a JIS Think Tank on Tuesday (March 13), Director of Communications and Marketing at NYS, Julia Smiley Green, noted that the expansion will allow an additional 240 persons to participate.

 

She said the programme will last for seven months, consisting of a three-week non-residential camp, followed by six months of supported work experience.

 

Participants in the camp will “undergo a series of training, mentoring and coaching that will make them more job-ready, employable and improve their personal and professional development,” Mrs. Smiley Green said.

 

Throughout the programme, the beneficiaries will be guided by a job coach, who will cater to their general needs and ensure that they are assisted to make the transition to the world of work.

 

Mrs. Smiley Green said that the job coaches will be responsible for ensuring that the participants get the personal and professional development training that they need.

 

“So we look at topics such as how they can manage their finances how it is they can make themselves more employable, how they should behave in the workplace, dress and deportment, and general skills that these young persons will need to help them to acclimatise themselves to the workplace,” she pointed out.

 

The job coaches and parish field officers will help the participants to identify their interests and skills during camp, after which they will secure placement opportunities to match their abilities.

 

They will also assist participants in exploring career development opportunities and programmes, individualised career pathways, as well as determine their readiness for the workplace.

 

On completion of the camp, the participants will undertake their six-month job placement.

 

During the first week of assignment, the job coaches will accompany participants to their placement and help them to get settled into the new environment, including understanding their tasks.

 

The parish field officers and job coaches will create and maintain a relationship with the employers and participants, conducting biweekly monitoring.

 

“We encourage our placement partners to allow these participants, despite their disabilities, to be fully engrossed in the workplace. We understand that they may need to be more closely supervised than the average worker within the workplace, but we want our partners to be reminded that they, too, have a meaningful contribution to make, and all they need is that opportunity to showcase their talents and skills,” Mrs. Smiley Green said.

 

In addition to completing an application form, persons are required to submit copies of their birth certificate, a referral from an institution to which they are attached, tax registration number (TRN), and National Insurance Scheme (NIS) number.

 

For more information on the programme, persons may visit any HEART Trust/NTA, Jamaican Foundation for Lifelong Learning (JFFL) or NYS office or call 1-888-432-7868.

 

CAPTION: Director of Communications and Marketing at the National Youth Service (NYS), Julia Smiley Green, highlights the various programmes being undertaken by the agency, at a JIS Think Tank on March 13.

JIS: With the Grade Six Achievement Test (GSAT) slated to go ahead as planned for March 22 and 23, Education Officer in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Patricia Haughton, says preparations have been going extremely well.

 

Speaking to JIS News on Thursday (March 15), Ms. Haughton, who was specifically asked about the western region, added that the Ministry is truly impressed with the weekend camps and extra hour of lessons that have been made available for students, noting that “a lot of effort went into these preparations”.

 

“We have selected and trained our invigilators, so that too has been going smoothly. We do expect a full sitting of the GSAT by our students, and we are not anticipating any problems,” she said.

 

GSAT, to be replaced by the Primary Exit Profile (PEP) in 2019, is Jamaica’s national high-school entrance examination. It is usually taken in March, with the results released in June. GSAT replaced the Common Entrance Examination in 1999.

 

The national mean score per subject from 2017 shows mathematics, 62.4 per cent; science, 64.7 per cent; social studies, 70.6 per cent; language arts, 72.8 per cent; and communication task, 76.2 per cent. With the exception of science, which had a slight decline, there were improvements in every other area over the previous year.

  

Ms. Haughton further noted that the Ministry has also done its part in implementing programmes such as mock exams, deploying math coaches and literacy specialists, practice papers and other programmes and workshops to assist students with their preparation.

 

She added that she expects parents to also be conducting extra lessons with the students at home, so as to put on the finishing touches.

 

“Special workshops have also been implemented as part of our assistance programme,” Ms. Haughton further pointed out.

 

For her part, Principal of the John Rollins Success Primary in St. James, Yvonne Miller-Wisdom, said “it’s all systems go” at her school, adding that “we could not be more ready”.

 

“We have a very good feeling about this, as we have not left anything up to chance. Our preparations have been excellent, and the children have certainly put in the work,” she said.

 

Eleven-year-old John Rollins head boy, Okere Bremmer, who listed Herbert Morrison Technical in St. James and Munro College in St. Elizabeth as his top-two high school preferences, said he finds the mock exams and the practice papers useful, adding that “we now have a better idea what to expect”.

 

“Our teachers here at John Rollins Success Primary have done everything to get us ready,” he added.

 

 Eleven-year-old Elizabeth Minors, who also attends John Rollins, said that while there will be the expected butterflies and a little nervousness, all that should disappear “once we sit down to take the exams”.

 

“I have been studying very hard, and I am very confident,” she added, noting that her top-two high school preferences are Montego Bay High School and Mt. Alvernia, both in St. James.

 

CAPTION: Grade Six Teacher, Theresa Morgan Williams, at the Corinaldi Avenue Primary School in Montego Bay, St. James, interacting with her students in class on Thursday (March 15).

JIS: The Students’ Loan Bureau (SLB) is reporting that for the 2017-2018 academic year it received 13,679 applications. for which more than $3.09 billion was disbursed, with an approval rate of 99 per cent.

 

The SLB provides loans as well as grants to help with non-tuition expenses to students pursuing tertiary studies.

 

Addressing a Jamaica Information Service (JIS) ‘Think Tank’ on March 14, State Minister in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green, assured students that the Government is working to ensure that all persons who qualify to access tertiary education will be able to pursue their goal.

 

“As a Government we want to see more youth accessing tertiary education, and this is a policy directive at the SLB,” he said.

 

There are three types of loans that students may access – Targeted; Pay as you Study and Postgraduate.

 

Executive Director of the SLB, Monica Brown, who also addressed the ‘Think Tank’, said that under the Targeted loan type, where a majority of the students would access tertiary financing, they are required to repay the loan on completion of their studies.

 

The loan repayment period has been adjusted from 10 years to 15 or 20 years, depending on the programme of study.

 

Ms. Brown said that although students accessing Targeted loans are not required to make repayments during the in-school years, the SLB encourages those who are able to make payments during the moratorium period to do so, as this reduces the amount that will be left to repay on completion of their studies.

 

She pointed out that effective April 2016, the Bureau switched from using the ‘add on method’ to using the reducing balance method to calculate the interest rate on repayment, and this has resulted in significant savings for those who borrow from the SLB.

 

The applicable interest rate using the reducing balance is 7.8 per cent during the in-school years and 9.5 per cent when the loan enters repayment stage. Ms. Brown noted that there are areas given priority for the allocation of funds, particularly where the contributions to national development are greatest. They are agricultural studies, engineering, information technology and maritime and logistics studies. The interest rate repayment is six per cent on the reducing balance.

 

Applications, which are now open for persons who wish to access loans for the 2018-2019 academic year, will close on Thursday, May 31.

 

CAPTION: State Minister in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green, addresses JIS ‘Think Tank’, on March 14. At right is Executive Director of the Students’ Loan Bureau (SLB), Ms. Monica Brown.

JIS: Restaurants of Jamaica (ROJ) has provided $4.5 million to further boost the operations of the Government’s national school-feeding programme, which will supply an additional 1,500 meals for students.

 

The funds will facilitate the provision of meals for the remainder of the academic year, which ends in June 2018.

 

The money was officially handed over to Nutrition Products Limited (NPL) during a ceremony at the National Heroes Circle offices of the Education Ministry on Wednesday (March 14).

 

Portfolio Minister, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid, welcomed the donation, noting that it will significantly help to fill gaps in the feeding programme, particularly at the early-childhood level.

 

He noted that the initiative, which represents good corporate citizenship, will go a far way in advancing the Ministry’s effort to provide greater support to students in need of nutritious meals, many of whom depend on the State to provide the only substantial meal they receive daily.

 

The Minister said this partnership with ROJ will ensure that more children attending school are provided with the appropriate nutrition that will improve their educational outcomes.

 

Minister Reid also praised State Minister in the Ministry, Hon. Floyd Green, who requested assistance with boosting the programme to support more children, for forging the partnership with ROJ.

 

For his part, Mr. Green noted that the Ministry has been working to expand the scope of the programme, by increasing the number of products that are provided in the system.

 

“That is why this injection will help us to do just that… . We’re now going into the final semester of the year, and this will enable NPL to roll out more products,” he said.

 

In the meantime, Marketing Director for ROJ, Tina Matalon, said the entity’s support to the school-feeding programme, is “a small but worthy contribution…which will make a difference in providing the nutrition that (children need)”.

 

“We don’t think any child should go to school hungry. We do believe that all children need proper nutrition and proper meals to be able to learn. As an organisation that feeds the nation, we want to make sure we do our part to feed the students,” she said.

 

Mrs. Matalon further informed that this support represents the first step in the Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) Jamaica ‘Add Hope’ initiative.

 

Add Hope is an international initiative by KFC’s parent company, Yum International, which collects donations in-store to fund meals for undernourished children.

 

Mrs. Matalon noted that the ROJ is currently in discussion with the Education Ministry to launch a second phase of the programme in September 2018. The second phase will enable KFC customers to donate part proceeds from select menu items towards the school-feeding programme.

 

NPL, which is responsible for the production and distribution of meals to schools under the national nutrition programme, currently provides approximately 300,000 students in more than 800 schools with breakfast and/or lunch each week.

 

They include youngsters on the Programme of Advancement through Health and Education (PATH), and others deemed vulnerable.

 

CAPTION: Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid (second left), accepts a representational cheque valued at $4.5 million from Marketing Director, Restaurants of Jamaica (ROJ), Tina Matalon (second right), during a ceremony at the Ministry’s National Heroes Circle offices on Wednesday (March 14). Also pictured (from left) are State Minister in the Education Ministry, Hon. Floyd Green, and Brand Manager, ROJ, Andrei Roper. The funds will provide support to the Government’s national school-feeding programme.