Vincentians excel at Taiwan University

by Jeana Jack 05.NOV.10

Three Vincentian students are among six CARICOM nationals on the Dean’s list at Ming Chuan University International College (MCUIC).

The three students are Kenton X. Chance, Jamali Jack, and Laverne Phillips.{{more}}

Two students from St. Lucia and one from Belize also made the list.

Chance, a Senior in the Department of Journalism and Mass Communications (JMC) has consistently excelled, being at the top of his class for the past three years.

“The fact that three Vincentians were on MCUIC’s Dean’s List, along with other Vincentian students who have previously been recognized at their various universities, shows that our students here are focused and hardworking,” he said.

“Vincentian students have been performing well, notwithstanding the challenges of studying in an environment where the language and culture are so different from ours and where the country is geographically far from home.”

Chance is concurrently enrolled in the Graduate School of International Affairs (GSIA).

Jack, a 3rd year JMC student, said he was surprised to receive the award.

“I knew I had done well last semester, but I only found out I was getting the award two minutes before receiving it on stage. I feel very fortunate to be in the company of my fellow Caribbean nationals who were also on the list,” he said.

“Considering what Hurricane Tomas did to SVG and St. Lucia this weekend, it is good that we can also share in something positive. This is further confirmation that even though we are from small islands we can accomplish great things with God’s help once we put our minds to it.”

He added that he was humbled by the continued prayers and support from his family in St. Vincent and Taiwan.

Phillips said she was not surprised to hear that she was on the Dean’s list.

“I’m excited that I made the list, but it really did not come as a surprise to me because I’ve always done remarkably well in my studies. I’m, however, grateful to God for giving me such an opportunity. I’m really very grateful as well to my family, especially my boyfriend Rohan Deroche, for all the emotional support they’ve given me over the past years.”

MCUIC has the highest population of Vincentian and international students in Taiwan.

While it is the first time that the Dean’s list is being published, the top student in each class receives a monetary reward each semester.

Meanwhile, Vincentian national scholar Seab Jackson, a graduate of National Tsing Hua University (NTHU), is among two students recently honored by the university for independent research.

Jackson, who graduated this year from the Department of Power Mechanical Engineering, completed research on using Algae as fuel to power Geared Turbo Fan (GTF) Jet Engines.

He explained: “The principal reasons for Algae are that they absorb Carbon Dioxide from the atmosphere when they are grown and when mass produced it’s one of the only Bio-fuels that doesn’t push up food prices by utilizing land that would otherwise be dedicated to producing food. Furthermore, energy utilization can be reduced by improving the efficiency of devices, hence, the proposal of the GTF and then combining these key technologies in a novel manner to achieve a relatively cleaner and more fuel efficient system.”

Jackson is presently doing quantitative assessment on the feasibility of Algae as an alternative fuel.