New-found opportunities

EDITOR: According to Nelson Mandela, there are four basic and primary things that persons in society wish for, one of which is sound educational opportunities for their children. A lot of opportunities are available in our societies; such include the availability of resources to pursue tertiary studies, like university advancement, a fundamental mandate of the education revolution.

One would like to focus on the “loan-free” educational opportunities available for Vincentian students to pursue tertiary studies. More opportunities for the modern generation to go abroad to study at any of the UWI campuses, Cuba, Taiwan, Turkey, Germany, Venezuela – you name it, not to mention the mass number of tuition scholarships available by the Government, and private investors, such as the Island Scholars Inc and the Dr Erling Harry Scholarship Foundation, to name a few.

There are so many educational opportunities today, yet not many opportunities afterwards – how ironic! On another note, one has to question the state of our economy today. Is it that the fortunate fear investments? Or is there any such thing as ‘fortunate’ anymore? Is it that there are investments and one may be too blind to see? There are so many unanswered questions.

Students venture abroad to study fields ranging from modern technology, with regard to the Environment and Medicine, Psychological Studies or the traditional fields of Medicine and Business. One has to wonder how things were in historic times. Yes, upon observation, more than 50 per cent of persons who graduated between the years 2008 and 2013 from the Community College hold a first degree. However, most have fled their homeland, seeking new opportunities to advance in their respective fields. One would have thought that the bonding procedure might have had implications of some sort.

Private entities even fear investing in our youths today. There is simply no explanation at this point. However, one would like to take the time out to solicit support for thriving corporations, such as the Island Scholars Incorporation. The recently established scholarship programme was founded by Mr Ronald Rose, who is originally from St Vincent and the Grenadines, based in the USA. The establishment currently funds a total of 13 students to date, who attend different campuses of the University of the West Indies. The funding is renewed if students achieve a GPA of 3.0 and above, while continuing to demonstrate a financial need, all of which information is available on the corporation’s website http://www.islandscholars.org/

One can give account from experience that although difficult to invest in students with a decline in the economy generally, hence the rising costs of a university education. There is need for fresh ideas and initiatives, which is solely in the hands of the modern generation and the generations to come; however, they must be given the platform on which to portray the skills and expertise and there must also be resources.

AJ