UWI Connect September 2010

Chancellor’s Column Oooooooooooooooo

Volume 6, Issue 1

Website: www.alumnionline.uwi.edu

September - November 2010

Triple P (Pelicans Past & Present) was the place to be!

Alumni Cricket Team led by the Hon. Courtney Walsh

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“One UWI, One Alumni Family”

UWI Connect

UWI Connect: For Alumni, Donors, Parents and Friends

Editorial As the year begins to wind down, we start to look at all that has been accomplished, at what is about to happen as well as at what the New Year will bring. Your Alma Mater has exciting plans for 2011 and these will be covered for you through our usual historic record of UWI events. I wish for you and yours a wonderful, blessed Christmas and health, happiness and prosperity in 2011.

V.I.P. Professor Henry Lowe

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UWI Benefit Gala Toronto 2011

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Tributes

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Triple P (Pelicans Past & Present) Alumni Cricket

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Graduation 2010

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In this issue we salute two beacons of light that the Caribbean has lost – The Rt. Hon. David Thompson and Prof. the Hon. Barry Chevannes. We also feature alumni like Professor Henry Lowe and Dr. G. Raymond Chang and share with you their continuing achievements. Support the AFUWI Gala in New York on January 26, 2011 as well as the Toronto Gala on March 26th.....they promise to be wonderful events.

Overcoming Challenges

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UWI Graduate becomes 2010 Rhodes Scholar

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Happy Reading!

Campus News

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You probably have realised that the letter U in The University of the West Indies could also stand for the U in Unity, as our regional institution could be considered the actualisation of the Unity of the West Indies. In fact, the UWI is a unifying regional force, however the reality is that competing loyalties, transient populations, social, economic and cultural diversity and geographic separation are some of the challenges the Alumni Relations arm at UWI faces in connecting and communicating with our graduate population.

We have over 60 class years living all over the world. They belong to different generations and financial brackets. Thus we must strive to keep a sense of community amongst our diverse alumni. Keeping track of alumni is difficult so we encourage you to help us to reconnect with more alumni by alerting all the UWI graduates you know in your “sphere of influence” and persuading them to join the Alumni Online (AO) Community.

Keep engaged with your Alma Mater. We know and appreciate that your strong “personal” positive voices about the UWI help with recruitment and with attracting donors and sponsors. Consider AO as your “home base” – as we are online ALL the time on AO @ www.alumnionline.uwi.edu, Facebook @ facebook.com/uwialumnionline, Twitter @uwialumnionline, You Tube @ www.youtube.com/user/uwialumnionline and foursquare @ foursquare.com/user/uwialumnionline. Join us at ANY time!

Celia Davidson Francis Editor-in-Chief

UWI Connect Editorial Team: Celia Davidson Francis (Editor-in-Chief), Elizabeth Buchanan-Hind, Beverley Pereira, Aileen Standard-Goldson, Marcia Erskine, Stephanie Alleyne-Bishop, Kellie Magnus, Candice York and Lacey-Ann Bartley Sources: Student and Campus Newsletters, News Items and Announcements, Campus Communications and Public Relations Offices, Faculties, Departments, UWIAA, Campus Electronic Messaging Centres, the Open Campus, UWIMAA, UWI Medical Alumni Secretariat, Campus Alumni Offices, Office of Administration, UWI STAT Corps and others.

Photography: UWI STAT Corps, Campus Photographers, Graduates and Friends of UWI Publishing Services: Stratcom Marketing Services Limited Yvonne Graham, graduate, Mona School of Business, UWI A publication of the Institutional Advancement Division, Vice Chancellery No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written permission of the publisher or agent.

The UWI Alumni Association (UWIAA) encourages all graduates to send articles/information to UWI Connect.

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Vice Chancellor’s Viewpoint

Be your brothers’ keepers

As UWI Vice Chancellor, I industry, tourism, as it assists in improving the have challenged Caribbean health, education, culture, environment and wealth tourism officials to focus on of Caribbean communities, is critically important. ‘history tourism’ as a means I encourage leaders of all Caribbean sectors to of developing tourism approach UWI as they seek to implement sustainably. When I addressed sustainable tourism products across the region. delegates at the Caribbean Do remember that the academic year 2010-2011 Media Exchange (CMEx) is “The Year of Student Scholarships”. I encourage conference in Kingston, you to work with UWI to help a current or Jamaica in October 2010 as future student to achieve his/her educational part of the CMEx panel on success. Any and every donation is valued education, I highlighted that and appreciated, no matter the amount. I there needs to be a better encourage you to give right now at understanding and promotion www.alumnionline.uwi.edu/donatenow. As I have of the history and culture of said before, each dollar contributed is an the islands. After visiting investment in our collective future. It is an Greece and touring their investment that we cannot afford not to make. ancient historical sites, I Your support of the American Foundation for the realised that the same UWI (AFUWI) Gala is also welcomed. This will emphasis needs to be placed Professor E. Nigel Harris take place on January 26, 2011 in Manhattan and on Caribbean historical sites Vice Chancellor, UWI I hope that all alumni in the Tri-State area, resident as well as the marine life, or visiting, will be there in record numbers. Please also flora and topography of the region if the region is to have a support the Toronto Gala on March 26th. sustainable tourism product.

As we all look to 2011, I wish for you and your families the very best. In truth, most of us have much to be thankful for and I encourage you all to be your brothers’ keepers, especially regarding those who continue to suffer in Haiti and St. Lucia; to support unity and fraternity and to remain or become “connected” to your Alma Mater. Have a wonderful holiday season! I look forward to sharing my thoughts with you in the New Year.

I believe there should be increased partnerships between tertiary educational institutions such as the UWI and governments and tourism officials in order to ensure the proper expertise is utilised to collect and tell our history. We also need proper analysis and data on the sector. I think the role of CMEx, which since 2001 has produced 18 conferences and symposia throughout the Caribbean and North America to underscore the value of the region’s largest

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VIP - Very Important Pelican bringing the next blockbuster drug to market. While in Beijing, Lowe had the opportunity to meet with pharmaceutical executives and tour pharmaceutical facilities for collaborative research development work.

Professor HENRY LOWE

Earlier this year, Lowe was granted a United States patent to conduct further research on the development of the drug. The drug, which is now in its final stages of development, is said to be equal to or better than most types of anti-cancer drugs.

Professor Henry Lowe continues to astound. Executive Chairman of the Environmental Health Foundation, Observer Business Leader 2006 award winner, lecturer, author and renowned scientist are the many ways that Professor Henry Lowe is recognised. His new book on prostate cancer is being welcomed by Caribbean men as it provides in-depth information on the prevention, management and treatment of the disease. It is co-authored with Dr. Perceval Bahado-Singh and Dr. Lowe presented it to the eighth Annual Congress of International Drug Discovery Science and Technology (IDDST) held in Beijing, China on October 23-25, 2010.

was asked to present on his cancer research work on Jamaican medicinal plants especially his recent work with Tillandsia recurvata (Ball Moss) which has demonstrated potent anti-cancer activities during testing. In fact he announced his research findings on Ball Moss to the world scientific community at the Ehrlich II Second World Conference on Magic Bullets in Nurnberg, Germany in October 2008.

Lowe who discovered a new drug treatment for cancer which is now undergoing final stages of the drug development for human cancer diseases,

The IDDST Congress is considered to be a leading international event that highlights scientific and technological breakthroughs, and focuses on

Lowe is a distinguished adjunct professor of ethno-medicinal chemistry at the University of Technology, as well as adjunct professor in the Department of Medicine, University of Maryland. He is also a senior research fellow at The University of the West Indies, Mona.

Professor Lowe has also worked with Professors West and Lockhart in the research on cannabis (ganja) for the management of glaucoma. In February of this year he was granted special residency in the US under the category of ‘Alien of Extraordinary Ability (in Science)’, joining a very distinguished group of internationally honoured scientists.

SUZANNE DE PASSE TO BE PRESENTED WITH THE BOB MARLEY AWARD AT THE AFUWI GALA IN NEW YORK, JANUARY 26, 2011 Suzanne de Passe, Co-Chair of de Passe Jones Entertainment, will be the first female to be awarded the prestigious AFUWI Bob Marley Award at the 14th Annual Legacy Awards Gala on Wednesday, January 26, 2011 in New York City. The Bob Marley Award is a recognition granted to individuals whose contribution to the advancement of arts and culture transcends boundaries of race, color, creed and geographies, uniting people throughout the world in a spirit that embodies the essence of the music and lyrics of the Hon. Robert Nesta Marley, OM. Suzanne de Passe began her career with Motown, discovering Michael Jackson and The Jackson 5, Lionel Richie and the Commodores, and numerous other multi-million selling artists. Currently, Suzanne along with her business partner, Madison Jones, are producing with Steven Spielberg, the definitive motion picture on the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. for DreamWorks. Suzanne’s illustrious career has included an Academy Award Nomination for co-writing “Lady Sings the Blues” and three Peabody Awards and a Golden Globe for the mini-series “Lonesome Dove”. She was Executive Producer for the sitcoms “Sister Sister” and “Smart Guy” for The WB Network. Other programmes have included, “The NAACP Image Awards”, “The Essence Awards”, and six seasons of “Showtime at the Apollo”. She has won two Emmy Awards and her productions have earned over 30 Emmy nominations. She is the subject of two Harvard Business School Case Studies and received an Honorary Doctorate in Humanities from Howard University. The recipient of numerous trade and civic awards, Ms. de Passe said she is “honoured” to receive the Bob Marley Legacy Award.

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Celebrating Excellence

Dr. G. Raymond Chang

From left: Andrew Chang (son); Brigette Chang (daughter); G. Raymond Chang; Donette Chin-Loy (wife).

UWI Alumnus Dr. G. Raymond Chang, an exceptional business leader and family and community oriented individual has been named Outstanding Philanthropist for 2010 by the Greater Toronto Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP). The AFP Awards celebrate the outstanding contribution of time, leadership and financial support made by organisations and individuals, who have set excellence benchmarks in encouraging the spirit of giving. The recipients will be honoured at a special luncheon on Thursday, December 2, 2010 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre in Canada. Dr. G. Raymond Chang is the Chair of CI Investment. His generosity as a volunteer and donor to the health, education, and cultural sectors are transforming communities across the country and beyond. The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) Foundation and Ryerson University jointly nominated Dr. Chang for his loyal and visionary support. He donated CAN$7 million toward research at CAMH and is among Ryerson’s most generous and committed supporters recognised most notably through the G. Raymond Chang School of Continuing Education for a CAN$5 million gift toward lifelong learning. Dr. Chang is the Chancellor of Ryerson. He also supports and serves a number of organisations including the University Health Network, Toronto General & Western Hospital Foundation, the Royal Ontario Museum, and organisations in Jamaica, including St. George’s College and The University of the West Indies, to name but a few. Dr. Chang received an Honorary Doctorate from UWI in 2007.

UWI graduate Suresh Sookoo has been named the head of RBC International Banking’s Caribbean operation. RBC International is a division of Royal Bank of Canada, which two years ago acquired RBTT Financial Group for US$2.2 billion. Sookoo, who was chief executive officer of RBTT from 2006 and a member of the transition team, has now been appointed CEO of Caribbean Banking, overseeing retail, business and corporate banking operations. He has been chosen because of his proven success as a leader and he will be in charge of the Caribbean operation which now spans 20 countries and has nearly 7,000 employees serving more than 1.6 million clients. RBC/RBTT is the official bank of the UWI Regional Endowment Fund and a staunch supporter of the UWI. 5

A Graduate’s Point of View

versus other US/UK possibilities, I considered the fact that the UWI has the technology and means to expose one to the most current international journals and discussions. A student can have access to the very same reputable journals which UK and US students are reading.

Galicia Blackman is an English Literature Lecturer at Sir Arthur Lewis Community College (SALCC), Morne Fortune, Castries, St. Lucia.

She pursued her undergraduate studies in English Literature at UWI, St. Augustine and returned to read for a Masters of Philosophy in English Literature. She has won three awards in the M&C Fine Arts Awards Competition: 1995 for poetry; 1996 and 1997 for prose. She believes that parents and guardians need to be encouraged to actively support students in habitual reading and that regular DEAR (Drop Everything And Read) campaigns would contribute to alert, critically thinking, well-rounded students.

We share with you extracts from her personal reflections about UWI. “…On becoming an educator I had to recognise that in my classrooms were students with mixed abilities and interests….The UWI experience reinforces that balance by facilitating learning and equipping students to be sound participants in social development. My first UWI experience was fantastic, enjoyable, and life-altering.” For her second she says, “…I wanted to be in a Caribbean cultural milieu. The undergraduate experience of interacting with Jamaicans, Vincentians, Dominicans, Antiguans, Trinidadians, and Barbadians was exactly what I was looking for. One might think that it is limiting to stay geographically close to home. On the contrary the cultural callaloo was as foreign as it was familiar. That paradox of the UWI experience is that which is so fascinating and enjoyable.

The idea that all to be learnt is geographically located in some metropolis far, far away is becoming antiquated with technology which puts everyone in such close proximity. Our Caribbean neighbours are equally valid as the intellectual experiences

Galicia Blackman which can enrich us. I was fortunate not to privilege the view that ‘overs’ is the best place to receive an education. I was pleased with my decision to immerse myself in the Caribbean UWI experience for the first and second time around.

UWI - The Caribbean Intellectual Advantage - There are all kinds of research findings which have already worked out many of the issues we publically discuss over and over. ….I became grateful for the UWI experience which allowed me to be exposed to international discourse, while ensuring I was well aware of what our Caribbean thinkers had contributed to that discourse. I had certainly not anticipated the sense of social responsibility that came with that exposure. When one converses with giants, one dismisses any Lilliputian syndrome which stunts growth.

UWI - The Economic Advantage When I weighed the financial considerations of attending the UWI

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UWI - The Caribbean Social Experience Advantage - The callalou of music, foods and hospitality traditions across the archipelago makes choosing UWI an exciting mix of comfort zones and novelties….. The beautiful paradox of the UWI social experience is that one comes to realise what makes one St. Lucian and distinctive from other islands while at the same time feeling a profound kinship with the other islanders. ….

I call it homogenous heterogeneity – diversity across the archipelago, which is united by a shared history and similar landscapes. Selecting a university is a very personal experience and scholarships change the dynamics a bit. However, if one considers the aforementioned factors, UWI emerges as a thoroughly superior choice. I believe The University of the West Indies offers that kind of necessary education and security which facilitates learning.

The UWI is keenly conscious that throughout the Caribbean we are in the process of nation building.

The UWI experience prepares us for these challenges, regionally and internationally. UWI graduates should all challenge and venture and create, whether we hustled through UWI or sailed through comfortably, whether we have had full time campus experience or Open Campus learning and whether we have attained certificate, diploma or degree recognition .

Source: UWI Speak (Edited), Sept. 11, 2010

UWIAA Chapter President

Mark Regis: President Trinidad and Tobago Chapter

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ark Regis first joined the then Guild of Graduates in 1993, the same year in which he joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as a Foreign Service Officer. In 1996 Mark left on what would turn out to be an eight (8) year posting to the Trinidad and Tobago High Commission in Ottawa, Canada.

Upon his return home in 2004, Mark served in the position of Deputy Chief of Protocol, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and then Personal Coordinator to the Prime Minister. Mark’s 14-year career in the Foreign Service ended in 2007 when he took up his current job of Government Relations Manager at BG Trinidad and Tobago, a member company of the BG Group, an oil and gas multinational. This is Mark’s second experience in the energy sector, having started his working career as a graduate trainee at the Trinidad and Tobago Methanol Company, one of the country’s petrochemical companies.

Mark rejoined the UWIAA Trinidad and Tobago Chapter Executive in 2005. He previously served a one (1) year term on the Executive during the period 1994-1995 and assisted with the organisation and coordination of the Guild’s first two International Wine and Cheese Festivals - the Chapter’s signature event - serving as a floor member until 2007 when he was elected Second Vice President and First Vice President respectively for the 2007 – 2009 term. In May 2010 Mark was elected President of the UWIAA Trinidad and Tobago Chapter.

Mark also finds time to serve as Director of a not for profit NGO the Social Justice Foundation, which provides videography training and mentorship to at-risk youth in rural areas. Mark holds a B.A. (honours) in History and Political Science (1989) and a Diploma, International Relations (1990). Mark is married to Ann, a fellow St. Augustine Campus graduate, UWI Alumni Association Life Member and a former Guild of Undergraduates Secretary.

Interesting Facts about Mark 1) Wanted to be a broadcaster (television). I applied to and gained entry to CARIMAC but did not complete the transfer in my second year since I would have to repeat first year.

2) I was an initiated "Chancellorite" being assigned the Hall name "Salty" for all of four days. The accompanying rhyme for the Hall name is unprintable!

3) My family's links as well as mine, to the UWI St. Augustine are strong. My mother worked at the ICTA from 1956 and transferred to the UWI in 1960 upon its establishment. She was the Administrative Assistant assigned to the UN Consultants who helped establish the Faculty of Engineering. She retired as the Faculty of Engineering's Senior Admin Assistant in 1986. Myself and all my siblings went to the then University Staff (Primary) School. Presently I am the only one of my siblings to have graduated from the UWI although my eldest sibling and sister is currently pursuing an Open Campus delivered degree programme in the Teaching of Reading. My first job, a vacation job as messenger was at the UWI and I also took my wedding photos on Campus.

4) I have met and had dinner with Fidel Castro, then President of Cuba.

5) The most interesting place I have been to is Israel where I was privileged to visit the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem.

6) I have the dubious distinction of being one of the last foreign officials to see Ariel Sharon, the former Israeli Prime Minister. He was incapacitated by a massive stroke days after the official visit that I was a part of, with the then Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister.

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UWIAA Highlights

AFUWI and UWIAA Washington DC host Orrett Rhoden in Concert The audience of UWI alumni, their friends and families who attended the performance of classical concert pianist extra-ordinaire Orrett Rhoden at the Terrace Theatre in the Kennedy Centre for the Performing Arts in Washington DC on Friday October 8, 2010 were treated to a showcase of classical music ecstasy. They in turn showed their immense appreciation for his awesome talent by their requests for encore performances of his masterful interpretation of Chopin, Beethoven and Bach.

After the concert, many of the patrons remained in the lobby area to personally express their pleasure to Mr. Rhoden on his delivery and to share the spotlight with this phenomenally talented Jamaican.

Amongst the many distinguished persons in attendance were UWI Chancellor Sir George Alleyne and Lady Alleyne; newly appointed Jamaican Ambassador to the USA and the OAS, Her Excellency Audrey P. Marks; Ambassador Richard Bernal and Mrs. Bernal; UWIAA New York President, Dr. Gerald White-Davis; UWIAA Washington DC President, Ms. Sha Shana Crichton; UWIAA Bahamas President, Mrs. Missouri Sherman-Peter; Chairman of the AFUWI, Mr. Michael Flanigan; COO Musson Group, Dr. Nigel Clarke and Mrs. Clarke; Minister of Finance and the Public Service (Jamaica), the Hon. Audley Shaw and Ms. Ann Marie Grant, Executive Director, AFUWI. The event was put on by the New York based non profit, American Foundation for The University of the West Indies (AFUWI) and the UWIAA, Washington DC Chapter, under the distinguished patronage of the Chancellor of The University of the West Indies, Sir George Alleyne. Sponsorship for the event was provided by Jamaica National Building Society (Overseas), Goodworks International, Pan American Health & Education Foundation, Policy Wisdom and Farley Cleghorn.

The UWIAA Belize Chapter supported the UWI Open Campus Belize as they presented the Special Guest Speaker: Professor Sir Hilary Beckles, Pro Vice Chancellor and Principal, UWI, Cave Hill Campus, Barbados, (Knight, Author, Historian, Academic Administrator, Editor, UNESCO Consultant and Cricketer) in an open lecture entitled: “Reparations from Britain for Slavery, Native Genocide and Military Colonisation”. The event was so well attended, that there was standing room only with over 600 persons present. It was so well received that he has been asked to return at the earliest opportunity.

L-R: Dr. Gerald White-Davis, Professor, Medgar Evers College, President - UWIAA New York; Mrs. Missouri Sherman-Peter, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of National Security, The Bahamas, President - UWIAA The Bahamas; Ms. Sha Shana Crichton, Lecturer, Howard Law School, President - UWIAA Washington DC; Ambassador Audrey Marks, Jamaica's Ambassador to the USA and OAS, UWI graduate; the Hon. Audley Shaw, Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Jamaica and Dr. Nigel Clarke, COO, Musson Group, UWI graduate.

L-R: Sir George Alleyne, Chancellor, UWI; Mr. Orrett Rhoden, Classical Pianist, Performer; Dr. Nigel Clarke, COO, Musson Group.

The University of the West Indies, Open Campus (Cayman) in collaboration with the

UWI Alumni Association (Cayman) presents a public lecture

“Political Parties: Instruments of Development or Agents of Divisiveness” by: Dr.

Livingston Smith

University College of the Cayman Islands November 25, 2010 at 6.00 p.m.

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Conference Room, Public Library, George Town, Grand Cayman

UWIAA Highlights

UWIAA Cayman On August 28, 2010, alumni and staff at UWI Open Campus Cayman hosted the Alumni Caribbean Independence Fiesta. As part of the annual calendar, the Alumni Chapter in Cayman hosts the event to commemorate the independence of the various Caribbean territories. Mrs. Leanora Wynter, President of the UWIAA Cayman Chapter advised that this year, the event was planned for late August to attract the Caribbean and foreign teachers returning for the start of the new school year, many of them alumni of the University. The main purpose of the event was to raise funds for the Alumni Scholarship Fund. The Chapter hopes that in the near future it will be able to provide support to a deserving student. Apart from its role as a funding source for the scholarships, the event served as a social for the Cayman UWI Alumni, their families and friends. Usually, a fete is sure to bring out the membership and this event was no exception.

Mrs. Wynter and her team were very pleased with the success of the event, as was Mr. Robert Geofroy, the Head of the Open Campus Cayman. Ms. Anneshia Welsh, the Open Campus Regional Coordinator for the Northern and Western Caribbean and Mrs. Karen Ford-Warner, the Open Campus Alumni Relations consultant, who both travelled from Jamaica to lend support to the event, also met with the Chapter and marketed the Open Campus Cayman and the Chapter to alumni and the wider community. The Cayman Student Guild, in particular Ms. Nadesha James, helped tremendously in making the event a success.

UWIAA Trinidad and Tobago Conversations on Innovation and Leadership The UWI Alumni Association Trinidad and Tobago Chapter launched a lecture series called “Conversations in Leadership and Innovation”, and the inaugural “Conversation”, co-hosted by the UWI Arthur Lok Jack Graduate School of Business Alumni Association, was held at the GSB Mt. Hope Campus on December 2, 2010. “It was conceptualised to build on and learn from the many indigenous experiences of personal and professional success that have been produced by UWI graduates the world over,” said Mark Regis, UWIAA Trinidad and Tobago Chapter President. It featured four distinguished UWI Alumni: Hayden Blades, President of Business Insight Limited and former Senior Economist of RBTT; Jason Julien, General Manager, First Citizens Investment Services Limited; Gina Welch, Marketing Director of FV Holdings Limited and Bevil Wooding, International Technologist and Chief Knowledge Officer, Congress WBN. Panellists gave rare insights and shared practical lessons and a very engaged audience of over 100 attendees explored macro and micro-level elements that lie Sharing information. behind leadership and innovation in the Caribbean context.

For information: Mark.Regis@alumni.uwi.edu.

UWIAA St. Lucia The Saint Lucia Chapter of The University of the West Indies Alumni Association (UWIAA) is very concerned about the situation facing the students of the Bexon Infant and Primary Schools in that country, as they try to resume normal life after what has been a very traumatic time for most of them after the devastation wrought by Hurricane Tomas in October 2010. They recognise that many are coping with great personal losses as well as the challenging circumstances under which they currently have to continue their education. The UWIAA St. Lucia is appealing to UWI alumni in St. Lucia and abroad, to join them in ‘adopting’ the Bexon schools by helping to provide them with as many educational resources and supplies as can be collectively mustered. There is a pressing need for uniforms and underwear for as many as 50 students. These are needed IMMEDIATELY. Other pressing items include hard-covered notebooks, exercise books, pencils, erasers, crayons, rulers, drawing books, sharpeners, activity/colouring books, pencil cases and lunch bags. Reusable plastic cups, bowls, plates spoons and forks would also be greatly appreciated in order to help bring the school’s feeding programme back on stream. The Chapter thanks those who have supported their efforts so far, however these children will need more support for many more months to come. They are appealing to other UWI Chapters around the region and across the world to continue to open their hearts to these children and to also enlist the help of friends and family.

Donations (or the money to purchase items) can be left at the Reception Office of the UWI Open Campus in Saint Lucia. Alumni abroad can send donations directly to the Open Campus St. Lucia or contact the IAD. Please help to bring a smile to a child’s face and some much needed support to teachers and parents struggling to bring some degree of normalcy to these children’s lives.

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Student Alumni Programming

UWI STAT News

UWI STAT Ambassadorial Visit Programme Hillan Morean, a Trinidadian pursuing the MSc. degree in Sports Management at the St. Augustine Campus and Azard Gumbs, a Kittian pursuing a Bachelor of Laws degree, visited Dominica under this programme from November 8-12, 2010. Mr. Gumbs noted, “I was afforded the opportunity to officially represent The University of the West Indies, under the auspices of the Vice Chancellor, as a student ambassador in a country that I had never visited before; to dialogue with prominent individuals on topical issues; and to interact with UWI faculty and staff along with the executive members of the Guild of Students at the Open Campus and high school students from around the country. The whole experience was amazing and very humbling.

Dr. Francis Severin (Dominica Open Campus Head) and Mr. Felix Wilson (Programme Officer) ensured that we received the support of the media to promote our activities in Dominica. I was filled with pride when persons in Dominica would ask, ‘Are you one of the UWI STAT Ambassadors?’ They would have either listened to us on radio, read about us and what we are doing online, seen us in the newspaper or listened to us on the television promoting the UWI and the main objectives of UWI STAT. I strongly believe that the UWI STAT Ambassadorial Island Visit Programme is very useful.

Firstly, it gives the students who are travelling an opportunity to learn more about other Caribbean countries and represent their institution.

This in my view encourages them to do more to assist in the development of UWI, even after they have graduated. Secondly, it showcases the leadership qualities that UWI students possess and the pride the institution takes in promoting topical issues such as HIV/AIDS, Regional Integration and Disaster Mitigation. Thirdly, it helps to market the University and attract students who are planning to pursue higher education as many prefer to hear from students of the UWI, as they feel the students will give a more objective picture than those employed.”

Students at St. Mary’s All Boys School.

Dominica Open Campus Head, Dr. Francis Severin (left) greets Azard Gumbs.

Minister of Sports, Dominica, the Hon. Justina Charles and Hillan Morean.

Azard Gumbs (right) presenting a gift to Minister of Education and Human Development, Dominica, the Hon. Petter St. Jean. Hillan Morean (left) looks on.

UWI STAT at Bahamas College Fair Hundreds of students went to the Grand Bahama College Fair recently, eager to see which tertiary institutions were in attendance and what programmes each offered. Universities and Colleges from across the United States, Canada, The Bahamas and the Caribbean were present hoping to recruit a new batch of students for the 2011 Fall semester. Fairs such as these are beneficial as they allow students direct access to representatives from various institutions and they also have the opportunity to hear first-hand from students that attend some of the universities. The UWI had representation from the Admissions Department and UWI STAT and represented the Caribbean region. Mr. Earl Alfred from the UWI Open Campus Bahamas advised that UWI is the only regional indigenous university serving the Caribbean and is supported by Caribbean governments. “We prepare our programmes for Caribbean students and can satisfy 99 percent of all the needs of students in The Bahamas,” he noted.

IMF and UWI STAT meet Dr. Gene Leon, Senior International Monetary Fund (IMF) Representative in Jamaica met with the UWI STAT (Mona) Corps on October 21, 2010 and gave them a comprehensive overview of the IMF including its role in negotiating stand-by agreements to assist indebted countries, promoting good governance and monitoring economic performance. He also shared the outlook for the region as outlined in the recently published IMF Regional Economic Outlook. The Ambassadors plan to share what they have learned with the rest of the regional Corps and their student peers in order to “demystify” the IMF amongst the youth of the region.

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Student Alumni Programming

STUDENTS HELPING STUDENTS: UWI STAT Ambassadors Launch Scholarship

From left: Dr. Garth Lipps, Coordinator of the Applied Psychology programme (Mona); Ms. Ava-Gay Smith, recipient from the Clinical Psychology programme; Ms. Naketa West, co-founder, M & N Foundation for Aspiring Youths; Ms. Giselle Patrick, recipient from the Applied Psychology programme; Ms. Maxsalia Salmon, co-founder, M & N Foundation for Aspiring Youths and Dr. Dennis Edwards, Head of the Psychology Unit.

The M & N Foundation for Aspiring Youths awarded two bursaries of $30,000 to students pursuing Masters degrees in Psychology at The University of the West Indies, Mona Campus. On September 21, 2010, Ms. Ava-Gay Smith and Ms. Giselle Patrick were awarded these bursaries. They are both final year students in the Clinical and Applied Psychology programmes, respectively. They were chosen based on their educational achievement, co-curricular/community involvement, financial need and their letter of intent. This scholarship initiative dubbed The Pursuit in Psychology Award, aims to improve access to graduate studies in Psychology, by relieving some financial burden; promoting academic excellence and facilitating student development; and to develop professional Psychologists in Jamaica. The foundation hopes to make this scholarship available every year at $200,000 each. They partnered on November 26, 2010 with “Seh Supm Poetry and Live Music” to host a benefit show. They appreciated the support given to this event. The founders, Maxsalia Salmon and Naketa West, are Vice Chancellor’s Ambassadors in the UWI STAT Mona Corps. While experiencing their own financial difficulties as students in the M.Sc. Clinical Psychology programme, they conceptualised this foundation and established it in February 2010. The foundation aims to make a positive difference through scholarship, mentorship and social skills training. To make donations email: aspiringyouths@gmail.com or visit the website at http://mnfoundation.tk/

USAID and CARICOM Workshops In November 2010, UWI STAT Ambassador Hylton Dennis attended the United States Agency for International Development (U.S.A.I.D.) Workshop to Improve Skills in Mobilising Funding for Projects. The presenter Ms. Feng-Hua Wang, Information Resource Officer for the Caribbean and Canada, covered organisational preparedness, project development, researching funding sources, and proposal writing in her presentation on 'The Principles of Successful Fund-raising'. To illustrate American philanthropy, she revealed that US$303.75 Billion was distributed in 2006 to various causes. She emphasised that projects which attracted the most sponsorship had effective needs analysis, clear objectives, justifiable methods and approaches, credible budgets, sustainability and provision for evaluation. Mr. Dennis also attended a workshop about integrating the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (C.S.M.E.) knowledge components into the school curriculum. Topics covered included: Historical Overview of Regional Integration; CARICOM Cooperation; C.S.M.E. Mission, Relevance and Benefits; C.S.M.E. Career Opportunities; C.S.M.E. Youth Involvement and C.S.M.E. Migration and Society.

UWI STAT St. Augustine "Colours for Haiti" Two years ago, one of the Ambassadors at the St. Augustine Corps came up with an idea to do something new to promote the Footprints: Students for Development project by doing just as the slogan says and literally leaving a mark on campus. Every year since then students at the St. Augustine Campus have come to know the Footprints: Students for Development Project for its trademark chalk drawings which feature some larger than life drawings of the theme of the current year.

Artists Kalifa Demani (right) and Mikial Sha preparing the area to draw.

A sketch of the design.

This year’s theme is "My Brother's Keeper" and the design was done

by Ms. Kalifa Demani the President of the UWI Arts Society and it was executed with the assistance of another artist Mr. Mikial Sha and the UWI STAT St. Augustine Ambassadors.

The drawing is an artistic expression of the drive to raise funding to assist some 55 students from the National University of Haiti to attend the St. Augustine Campus after being displaced by the January 2010 earthquake. It took 5 hours to complete and was proudly used by the St. Augustine Corps to launch Footprints 2010 - 2011 in collaboration with the UWI Guild of Students "veye, fre mwen an" or "My Brother's Keeper". The Footprints 2010-2011 project seeks to raise both funds and awareness of the drive to aid Haitian students to complete their studies and then return to help in rebuilding Haiti.

Footprints 2010-2011 was officially launched on Tuesday September 21, 2010. The project will run for the entire academic year and will feature fund-raising events, lectures, displays and opportunities for students to get involved and make a contribution by volunteering, donating or advocating.

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Tributes

A Light... gone too soon The Rt. Hon. David Thompson We pay tribute to the Rt. Hon. David Thompson the late Prime Minister of Barbados and UWI graduate who died on Saturday, October 22, 2010, at the age of 48. He was fiercely committed to the development of Barbados and was also a passionate Caribbean man who brought a sharp and incisive perspective to CARICOM. It is widely acknowledged that he served his country with distinction, albeit briefly.

“The news of Prime Minister Thompson’s death cast somewhat of a pall on our graduation ceremonies for the Cave Hill Campus of the UWI. We observed moments of silence as was appropriate and in noting his passing I remarked that there would be another more appropriate time at which the University would record more formally a tribute to his work and memory. There are several ways in which his death touched and impacted on the University. First, he was a proud honours graduate of our Faculty of Law and is one of the Prime Ministers, graduates of our University in whom we are well pleased and of whom we are very proud. He too was also proud of being a son of the Pelican and his career after he graduated brought credit not only to himself, his family and people of Barbados, but also to his Alma Mater. I followed his career in politics from a distance of course, but am not privy to the details of his rise to the political eminence which he attained.

The fact that he did so at such an early age must be a tribute both to his intrinsic worth, as well as to his skill as a politician, as many are called, but few are chosen to lead their countries. ...Farewell, and as the Jamaicans would say: Walk good David and may good duppy walk with you!”

George Alleyne, Chancellor

“The University of the West Indies mourns along with the people of Barbados and the Caribbean the loss of Prime Minister, the Rt. Hon. David Thompson. In his short term in office as Prime Minister of Barbados, he was impressive in the demonstration of his deep commitment to the development of his country and the region. His thoughtful and impactful interventions in various fora were insightful and fully appreciated. He was unswerving in his service to Barbados to the very end. The region has lost an outstanding son whose promise as a great leader has only sharpened the sense of loss, not only in his country but throughout the West Indies. As an outstanding alumnus of The University of the West Indies who served in various capacities, as President of the Guild of Students, as a member of academic staff and more recently as Chair of our University Grants Committee, David Thompson was unstinting in his support of our own efforts to advance the region’s development interests at home and in the wider global community.”

E. Nigel Harris, Vice Chancellor

12

Tributes

Remembering Barry Chevannes ... A Cultural and Social Crusader Professor Emeritus the Hon. A. Barrington Chevannes OJ respected social anthropologist, prolific composer, mentor, lecturer, researcher and administrator. leading activist for peace, aged 70, has passed away, following a brief illness. Professor Chevannes was one of Jamaica’s leading intellectuals and will be missed not only for his outstanding contribution to the UWI, but also as the Head of the Violence Prevention Alliance in Jamaica and as a founding member of Fathers Incorporated, a parenting support group that focuses on developing and instilling positive values in men. He headed the National Commission on Ganja out of which the National Report on Ganja Use was produced and contributed to the Peace Management Initiative. He was Director of the UWI Centre for Public Safety and Justice. Earlier this year, he spearheaded the planning and arrangements for the official funeral of Vice-Chancellor Emeritus Rex Nettleford. Professor Chevannes, who received many awards nationally and internationally, also received the Vice Chancellor’s Award (UWI) for outstanding achievements in research, teaching and public service and is also recognised for his original contribution to Jamaican folk and religious song heritage. He was also an international research consultant — answering demands throughout the West Indies, Europe, and the United States.

Vice Chancellor Professor E. Nigel Harris noted that, “His immense contributions to academia, culture, the Rastafari movement, peace management, justice reform, youth development, ganja law reform, Pan-Africanism and a litany of other areas also illustrated to us a man who was untiring in his pursuit for the greater good for all, and even more Hon. A. Barrington Chevannes OJ so the many marginalised peoples in our societies”. The Vice Chancellor also said he was committed to the advancing of UWI and that he performed voluntary acts of public service with distinction. According to Professor Hazel Simmons-McDonald, Pro Vice Chancellor and Principal of the Open Campus, “He has made a significant contribution as a scholar and humanitarian. His death is a great loss to the UWI. I am deeply saddened by it and all of those who worked with him and knew him must be devastated by this loss”. UWI colleague Trevor Munroe said the late professor was admired as an outstanding teacher, researcher and author. He said Professor Chevannes’ pioneering study on the Rastafarian movement brought him “justifiable international recognition”.

13

Fund-raising

UWI Benefit Gala Toronto 2011 Saturday, March 26th at the Four Seasons Hotel, 21 Avenue Road, Toronto, Canada

14

Fund-raising

15

Sports at UWI

Cuddy leads UWI

The Hon. Courtney Walsh led his UWI alumni team bravely against the UWI students team at the Triple P (Pelicans Past and Present) 20/20 Cricket Match, which was held at the UWI Mona Bowl on Saturday, November 27, 2010. Known more for his bowling skills, he made a classy 15 runs before his team was out for 97. Right handed batsman and lecturer, Julian Cresser scored with 25, followed by G. Smith with 14 and Gilbert Bellamy (President of the UWI Alumni Association Jamaica Chapter) with 8. Olympian, Grace Jackson showed great athleticism in the field. The alumni team also included Roland Butcher, the Director of Sports at Cave Hill Campus who flew in from Barbados especially to support the event, as well as Nehmiah Perry and Wayne Lewis.

The students fought back however lead by captain Shane Brooks and were 89 for 1 when play was called due to bad light. A notable contribution was made by Simon Jackson who was at wicket with 52 not out. Other players included Dwayne Robinson, Chadwick Walton and Tarique White. The Triple P match was organised by the Vice Chancellor’s UWI STAT (Students Today, Alumni Tomorrow) Mona Corps and was preceded by a fun WACKY WACKY match in which the staff team led by Dalton Myers defeated the Guild of Students team.

Here players such as Guild President, Jovaughn Neil, UWI STAT Alumni Ambassador Floyd Green and Medical Doctor Dayton Campbell were featured. There was music by DJ Laron, and many giveaways by sponsors. We thank Supreme Ventures, Cuddyz, RBTT Bank, FirstCaribbean International Bank, Western Sports, Cooyah, Wynlee Distributors, National Water Commission, The Gleaner Company, Power 106 FM, News Talk 93 FM, the Office of the Principal (Mona), the Institutional Advancement Division (IAD) and the UWI Bookshop (Mona) for their sponsorship and support. Walsh has promised to make this an annual event to support his Alma Mater, the UWI. The event raised $96,700, $55,000 of which will be donated to FOOTPRINTS: Students for Development (Mona) and $40,000 of which will be given to the UWI Regional Endowment Fund (designated for Mona).

16

ellent

Hamilton gave exc ll, Floyd Green and Otis L-R: Marlon Campbe ch.

Mat cky Wa cky Wa commentary for the

ntator Donald Smith, comme P and scorer for Triple Match.

Grace Jackson, Olympian and Sports Development Director in the Offic e of the Principal (Mona) at the wick et.

The one and only Cuddy.

Alumni Team at Triple P presents a A representative form RBTT Bank nt from stude a n ngto Carri Ato to token STAT Tobago while Darren Bodkin, UWI President, Mona (right) looks on. r, Applause from Erlene Kowlessa for 2nd Secretary, High Commission go Toba the Republic of Trinidad and ime and Joseph Lowe, Director, Marit and Transport Services Ltd. also ident of representing Roger Hinds, Pres ica. the Shipping Association of Jama

FirstCaribbean Interna tional Bank was one of the many sponsors who suppor ted the event.

Dr. Dayton Campbell, UWI STAT Alumni Ambassador and former Guild President receives a gift from sponsor RBTT Bank for being top scorer.

ves his Kemoi Burke of Preston Hall recei Hamilton Western Sports Prize from Otis ni Relations, while Angellique Virtue, VP Alum ent.

UWI STAT (Mona) shares the mom

Kimberly Cunningha m, Guild Secretary (Mona), giv es a feminine touch to the art of bow ling.

Wacky Wacky Guild of Students Team led by Jonathan Cabralis, Irvine Hall Chairman (stooping).

Part of the crowd enjoying the

match.

L-R: Gilbert Bellamy, UWIAA Pres ident, Jamaica Chapter; Dr. Aileen Standard-Gold son, Vice President, UWIAA Jamaica Chap ter and Carlton Lowrie, Director of Student Serv ices and Development (Mona) enjoying the match.

The victorious Students Team.

17

Graduation 2010

Welcome to the UWI Graduate Family is the official Head of the UWI Alumni Association Did you know? The UWI Chancellor according to the UWI Charter. The Chancellor is the sole person in the regional institution made up of the four campuses, who is authorised to grant degrees by the University. This is why the Chancellor heads each ceremony and shakes the hand of each and every graduate across the regional institution. The respective Campus Registrar then presents the degree that the Chancellor has given him/her authority to give out, on behalf of The University of the West Indies.

Our Chancellor, Sir George Alleyne, in his message to 2010 graduates extended his heartfelt congratulations and said, “Every year I marvel at the renewal that is signified by the appearance of a crop of shining, young faces eager to face the uncertainties of the world, armed with the tools for success that have been given to you here in The University of the West Indies”.

Graduation Highlights from across YOUR Alma Mater!

Cave Hill

Mona

UWI STAT Ambassador Valedictorian at Cave Hill, Mr. Jermaine O. Case took the opportunity to note that, “The highlight of my University experience was the confluence of Caribbean cultures that created a space in which the mechanics of regional integration was put to the test. We all came here from diverse backgrounds: as far north as Anguilla to as far south as the mainland of Guyana. ….. For despite our diversities we developed shared bonds and today are gathered to celebrate our accomplishments as one Caribbean…. The UWI represents the bedrock for the actualisation of regional integration. Not only has it brought some of the most brilliant minds of the various Caribbean nations to one space, but also, it has gauged our understanding and appreciation of oneness with diversity. ….. Graduates, as we continue to be proud bearers of this light rising from the west, the onus is on us to continue the work of our predecessors as great architects of a modern Caribbean civilisation.”

At UWI Mona, three students were named Valedictorians, Dakota Marshal, a Linguistics major, Alyssa Morgan who majored in Computer Science and Medical Physics and Bio-engineering and Altricia Dawson who majored in Management Studies. Dakota Marshall in her address implored graduates to ensure that they give back to the University and society despite the economic pitfalls. Marshall thanked the UWI for a job well done and appealed to her peers to support it as it endures the worst financial crisis in its 62-year history.

She said, “We did not receive an education only to make big money for me, myself and I. We received an education so that we can serve our fellow man, so that we can contribute positively to the development our country”. Professor Edward Baugh, a former University orator, a scholar and a poet, was one of five persons who received honorary degrees at the Mona graduation. Mr. George Neville Ashenheim and the Honourable William McConnell, OJ, CD received the LLD, while Dr. Knox Hagley and Dr. Renn Holness received the DSc., and Professor Edward Alston Cecil Baugh the DLitt. At Cave Hill the Rev. Dr. Donald Henry Kortright Davis, the Honourable Elliott Mottley QC, Professor Naana Jane Opuku-Agyemang and Mr. Charles Straker received the honorary LLD. St. Augustine also conferred four honorary degrees at its ceremonies. The honorary LLD was conferred on Mr. Doddridge Alleyne, Mr. Hans Hanoomansingh and Mrs. Diana Mahabir Wyatt and Mr. Thomas Gatcliffe received the honorary Doctor of Sciences degree (DSc.).

18

Graduation 2010

“One UWI, One Alumni Family” Open Campus The UWI Open Campus celebrated its second official regional graduation on October 16, 2010 in St. Georges, Grenada.

Over 130 graduates from most of the 16 “UWI Countries” attended, representing the rest of the 2010 graduating class of about 700 from across the region. UWI Chancellor, Professor the Honourable Sir George Alleyne said, “I can never emphasise enough that the reputation of the University depends to a large extent on the manner in which you deport yourselves in whatever sphere you choose. You are our best advertisement and I like to think that the value of such advertisement only grows as the years go by”. Present to celebrate with the graduates were the Governor-General of Grenada, His Excellency Carlyle Arnold Glean; the Governor-General of St. Kitts & Nevis, His Excellency Sir Cuthbert Sebastian; and the Prime Minister of Grenada, the Honourable Tillman Thomas. The Chancellor also gratefully acknowledged the generous gift of land for the UWI to expand its presence in the country by the Grenadian people and government.

The graduation address to the students was made by St. Kitts-born Professor Caryl Phillips, Professor of English at Yale University. Both Professor Phillips and Mrs. Beverley Steele, CBE, were conferred with honorary doctorates. The University Registrar Mr. C. William Iton, called on the Chancellor to confer the degrees, associate degrees, diplomas and certificates. Sir George shook hands with each graduate, after which they were presented with their degree by the Open Campus Registrar, Ms. Simone Augier. The 2010 Open Campus Class Valedictorian, Mr. Daren Pinard from Dominica, who graduated with first class honours in Banking & Finance, spoke on behalf of his fellow graduates. He noted that, “As graduates, we become ambassadors of change. I urge you to know and live up to the UWI’s pledge of excellence, of social and professional responsibility…our children must no longer have to wonder if a great university education will be within their reach. They must grow up feeling its presence and influence all around them”.

Professor Caryl Phillips (at podium) gives the Graduation Address to the Class of 2010 at The University of the West Indies Open Campus Graduation Ceremony held in Grenada.

St. Augustine The UWI Alumnus Representative Mr. Jerry Medford, in his Greeting to the Class of 2010 exhorted them all to “Let your Pelican Pride show”. He encouraged their participation in the UWI Alumni Association wherever in the world they traveled and beseeched them to become active members of the alumni and to give something back to ensure that their Alma Mater moves from strength to strength.

At UWI St. Augustine Campus, six students were named Valedictorians at its Graduation Ceremonies held on October 28th, 29th and 30th, 2010. Ms. Nakita Noel spoke at the Faculty of Science and Agriculture ceremony, Mr. Robert Shirley delivered the Valedictory Address at the Faculty of Engineering; at the Faculty of Social Sciences, Mr. Nicholas Seemungal spoke at the morning session, while Ms. Vandana Siew Sankar spoke at the second. Mr. Erle Wright was Valedictorian from the Faculty of Humanities and Education and Ms. Priya Sahadeo, from the Faculty of Medical Sciences.

Campus Valedictorian, Erle Wright, believes that graduates must not view the pursuit of tertiary education and the attainment of degrees as “purely utilitarian,” but consider its impact on the well-being of others. Wright graduated with a BEd. Primary Education (specialisation in Educational Administration) with First Class Honours from the Faculty of Humanities and Education.

He urged his fellow graduates to “consider the impact made on the well-being of others,” and to engage in serious introspection on what they had achieved and learned. “The education we have received should be to us a living, growing entity because we have learned how to learn.”

19

UWI Bookshelf

Dialogues The Department of Liberal Arts, UWI St. Augustine, hosted Dialogues 2010—a collaborative launch of recent book length publications by members of the Department on Thursday November 11, 2010 at the Learning Resource Centre. Dialogues 2010 featured Language Education and Policy in Fiji: A Culturometric Investigation of Ethnic Values. Vols 1&2 by Béatrice Boufoy Bastick (Lambert Academic Publishing 2010); and Ancestories: Readings of Kamau Braithwaite’s Ancestors by Professor Emeritus Gordon Rohlehr (Lexicon 2010).

Three works of fiction were also launched, including Moving Right Along: Caribbean Stories in Honour of John Cropper edited by Funso Aiyejina with Judy Stone. Two award-winning works of fiction were featured—Barbara Lalla’s Cascade: A Novel (UWI Press 2010), Winner of the UWI Press Inaugural Fiction Award; and Jennifer Rahim’s collection of short stories Approaching Sabbaths (Peepal Tree Press 2009), winner of the prestigious Casa de las Américas Prize for Caribbean Literature in English. Three edited journal collections were also launched. “Where is Here: Remapping the Caribbean” Journal of West Indian Literature Vol. 18 No. 2, edited by Jean Antoine; “Caribbean Religion and Politics: A Model for Cultural Change” Wadabagei: A Journal of the Caribbean and its Diaspora. 12 (3) Winter 2009, edited by Maarit Forde and Diana Paton; and “The Culture of Violence: A Trinidad and Tobago Case Study” Caribbean Review of Gender Vol 4: 2010, edited by Valerie Youssef and Paula Morgan.

Liv Inspired Everyday life should inspire you. Your joys and successes should inspire you to anticipate the rewards of your hard work. Your disappointments should inspire you to find new ways to achieve that which you desire. Olivia Rose, affectionately called “Liv” by her family and friends, is a graduate of the UWI, Mona. Her book encourages us all to 'Liv inspired' through nature, people, sports, things and generally through life's events and experiences.

UWI Romance Produces Acclaimed Young Writer Christian Campbell is a young writer of Bahamian and Trinidadian heritage, an Oxford Rhodes Scholar and member of the teaching Faculty of the Department of English at the University of Toronto.

His poetry and essays have been published widely in journals and anthologies such as Callaloo, Indiana Review, New Caribbean Poetry, New Poetries IV, PN Review, Poetry London, Small Axe, The Ringing Ear: Black Poets Lean South, The Routledge Companion to Anglophone Caribbean Literature, Wasafiri and West Branch. His work has been translated into Spanish in the anthology Poetas del Caribe Ingles. His first book of poetry, Running the Dusk, published by London based Peepal Tree Press, a publishing house that specialises in Caribbean and Black British writers, was named a finalist for the Cave Canem Prize by African-American poet Sonia Sanchez, and was shortlisted for the prestigious 2010 Forward Poetry Prize for the Best First Book in the UK.

Christian Campbell

The reviews of this collection are outstanding. Elizabeth Alexander, USA President Barack Obama’s Inaugural Poet and Chair of African American Studies at Yale University, describes “Dusk” as “A truly auspicious debut by a brilliant young writer of wide-open ear and versatile tongue”. Running the Dusk is deep-souled, keen-eyed, knowing, honed, gorgeous. Campbell was raised by a Bahamian and a Trinidadian. He notes “My breed of Caribbean person is not strange at all. I’m a UWI baby — my parents met at The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine. In the diaspora, and Toronto in particular, it makes perfect sense, because there is a lot of this cross-Caribbean mix-up business. The thing is, we haven’t really talked enough about what this means. At a very early age, I knew the troubles and limits of nationalism and I know that I must also ‘make trouble’ for the nation. My heritage gave me an innate sense of the broadness of the Caribbean and the many Caribbeans — ‘broader than Broadway’, as Barrington Levy would put it. It grounds me in my ability to fully draw on the spiritual resources of all the Caribbeans. It’s all mine.”

Source: Starbroek News, October 2010. (Edited)

20

Overcoming Challenges

Saluting Camille Daley,

D O U Saluting Shamla Maharaj, 24, who

was born with Cerebral Palsy. She overcame her disability, went through the school system in Trinidad and graduated from the UWI, St. Augustine with a Bachelor of Science in Agri-Business and Management. She feels good about her achievements and looks forward to completing her Masters degree for which she has already started working. After this she definitely wants to work, and after getting the requisite job experience, wants to do her Ph.D. Her proud mother Chandra Maharaj expressed her excitement and delight at her daughter’s achievement. She noted that it was not difficult for her daughter to function at the University as she (Chandra) lived with her at the St. Augustine Campus, at Milner Hall. “I stayed on campus with her for the three years while she did her degree because there are things she could not do for herself,” Maharaj said. She said she was thankful to the University as they understood her daughter’s needs. “We got full support from the University, they helped us out in any way they could and we are so thankful to them,” Maharaj said.

Shamla said the rest of her family are very supportive and happy with her achievements. “My dad and two younger brothers are very happy for me and they just want me to be successful,” she said. Shamla also said that she enjoyed Economics, Mathematics, Marketing and Management the most.

Her family covered the cost for the first two years while a scholarship she received from the Ministry of Public Administration paid for the final year of study and also got her a motorised wheelchair to make it easier for her to get around. She said her lecturers were very understanding of her disability as they made certain accommodations for her. “Sometimes during class, the lecturer when going through slides would keep it longer on the screen for me to be able to write everything as I would have written slower than the other students.” She shared advice to those who may have a disability like her and want to pursue their own dreams. “Don’t consider yourself different, you are just like anyone else, just keep focused on what you want and don’t keep yourself back in any way,” she said.

B L E F E A T U R E 21

who was for most of her childhood years, a sickle cell patient who endured both physical and emotional pain owing to the debilitating disease.

Instead of allowing it to control her life, it became the catalyst that led her and a colleague to form the Sickle Cell Support Club of Jamaica (SCSCJ) which now helps others like her deal with the illness. Daley was just 19 years old and was pursuing her first degree at the UWI, Mona Campus, when she and fellow sickler Morette Wright decided to form the group in 1992. Both knew firsthand the stigmas and fears surrounding the disease, and also the level of depression at times experienced by some of those affected.

Eighteen years later, the group still commits to its core function of advocacy and providing emotional support for patients. However it is still a struggle to get patients to reveal their status. Having experienced teasing as a child, Daley understands the reason for this. They try to educate and diminish some of the myths and misconceptions surrounding sickle cell. However at 37 years old, Daley has proven that the disease is not a death sentence. Although she had to miss many days from school, she went on to pursue her first degree and a Master’s in Development and Social Policy at UWI. She is now a teaching assistant in the Department of Sociology, Psychology and Social Work, where she is currently pursuing her doctorate and was recently awarded by FirstCaribbean International Bank for her selfless work under their Unsung Heroes Programme.

SCSCJ provides emotional support to each other and works on projects to help other sicklers like themselves.

Among other things, the group was successful in getting the Jamaica Government to implement a national blood programme for neo-natal screening of babies at several local hospitals in 1996. The group’s booklets, Get The Facts on Sickle Cell Disease and The Teacher’s Guide to Sickle Cell Disease are currently being used by patients, relatives, health workers and teachers, and the club’s annual Sickle Cell Awareness Week has increased awareness about the disease. Realising that some sickle cell patients had to drop out of school, the group also places a lot of emphasis on the personal development of sicklers through skills training and remedial classes. The group continues its fund-raising initiatives to assist patients and also teach them how to deal with the pain or to help to finance their medications. It is Daley’s hope that one day the Ministry of Health in Jamaica will list Sickle Cell as one of those diseases covered by the National Health Fund so that patients can get medication at discounted prices.

Philanthropic News

Philanthropy in Action New York Graduate’s Proactivity Helps OC St. Kitts When Mrs. Aelicia Yeates visited the Open Campus St. Kitts on September 2, 2010, she was able to see first hand the needs of the Campus there. She noted that the library room needed more books, the roof needed repair, the computer room had only 13 computers for a class size of 20 to 25 students, and the need for a projector in one classroom. She left St. Kitts with the determination to help and got to work when she returned to New York. Within a couple days of her return, Mrs. Yeates was able to locate and secure a projector which was sent to the St. Kitts UWI Open Campus by courier.

Mrs. Aelicia Yeates

Dr. Gerald White-Davis, the President of the UWIAA New York Chapter said, “Mrs. Yeates is to be congratulated on an exemplary performance demonstrating the kind of social responsibility which each of us as a graduate should emulate in giving back to our Alma Mater. Surely this is ‘One UWI, One Alumni Family’ in action”.

Alumnus gives back in St. Lucia The Open Campus, St. Lucia received a generous donation from Mr. Embert Charles on September 2, 2010, which consists of Mr. Charles’ entire personal collection of more than 400 Journals and Monographs on Media and Communication Studies. Mr. Charles is currently the Managing Director of the Eastern Caribbean Telecommunications Authority and was formerly Director of Information Services for the Government of St. Lucia as well as Executive Director of the St. Lucia Folk Research Centre. Most importantly he is a three-time UWI Alumnus. The collection that he donated should be of particular interest to journalists and indeed anyone with an interest in mass communications. Mr. Charles joins a distinguished group of contributors to the growing body of collections of the Open Campus. Other notable collections available at the Open Campus for the purpose of scholarly research include that of the late Patricia Ismond and Roderick Walcott.

Mr. Embert Charles handing over journals to Ms. Daisy St. Rose.

UWI Graduate Continues to Assist Medical Students A graduate of the UWI, Courtney Foster holds a Bachelor of Laws degree and recently successfully completed studies at the Norman Manley Law School. Her annual Kids For Charity Fashion Show took place on September 5, 2010 in Kingston, Jamaica in honour of Dr. Norman Sinclair. Sinclair was an older brother of Foster’s mother, Janett, and when he passed on, Foster vowed to honour his memory. She established the Norman Sinclair Memorial Medical Scholarship the following year and since then, has helped 13 medical students at the UWI, Mona.

Her philanthropy and humanitarianism have earned her many awards, including the Gleaner Honour Award for Voluntary Service in 2001; the Choices’ Magazine Young Achievers’ Award in 2003; as well as the Prime Minister’s Youth Award for Excellence in the category of Youth Service.

22

Philanthropic News

UWI St. Augustine helps Haitian Students

Donations Needed!

We need your HELP! Support for Student Scholarships and Bursaries is still urgently required.

The Regional Endowment Fund Accounts that facilitate deposits of Sterling as well as United States and Jamaican curr ency have been set up as follows: National Commercial Bank Jamaica Ltd. University Branch Mona Account #: 402599987 Currency: Jamaican dollars SWIFT/SORT Code: JNCBJMKXAXXX

L-R: Sharan Singh, Director, UWI International Office; Professor Clement Sankat, UWI Pro Vice Chancellor and St. Augustine Campus Principal; Anna-Maria Garcia-Brooks, Group Corporate Communications Manager, Republic Bank; Conrad Aleong, Chairman, United Way, Trinidad and Tobago; Ronald Harford, Chairman, UWI Development and Endowment Fund; Ewart Williams, Governor of the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago; Hillan Morean, President of the UWI Guild of Students, St. Augustine Campus; Roysce Ramsaran, RBTT; Anna Mohammed, SM Jaleel and Company Limited; Dileena Jaggenath, EXIM Bank.

Account #: Currency: SWIFT/SORT Code:

Several corporate entities recently donated over US$500,000 to the UWI Haitian Student Fund to help bring 70 Haitian students to the St. Augustine Campus. When the earthquake devastated Haiti earlier this year, most of the university buildings were destroyed and 40 academics and over 200 university students killed. UWI agreed to facilitate students from Haiti to complete their final year studies. Forty-one from Engineering, twelve from Agriculture, eleven from Dentistry, one from Management Studies and five veterinarians. Principal Professor Clement Sankat said UWI St. Augustine will contribute over US$730,000 out of US$1.3 million required to bring 70 Haitian students to the St. Augustine Campus. He appealed to alumni, staff and students as well as civil society to help raise more funds for the students from Haiti.

Central Bank Governor Ewart Williams and Chairman of the UWI St. Augustine Campus Council and Co-ordinator of the corporate initiative said the University has committed to meet the tuition and accommodation costs but needs to seek help to cover the students’ airfares, living expenses and study materials. Estimated costs are US$6,500 per student.

The companies that donated to the fund include RBTT who gave US$65,000; Republic Bank, US$124,500; SM Jaleel, US$25,000; United Way, US$200,000; Export Import Bank of Trinidad and Tobago, US$6,500 and UWI Development and Endowment Fund (St. Augustine), US$100,000. Persons interested in making a contribution to the UWI Haiti Relief Fund can do so via Republic Bank in Trinidad, account number, 160 135 528 301.

406398293 US dollars JNCBJMKXAXXX

Barclays Bank PLC Knightsbridge International 68 Knightsbridge London SWIX 7NT Account #: 50853860 Currency: Sterling SWIFT/SORT Code: 20-47-35 When you have made the donatio n it is important that you notify the Vice Chancellor’s Office of the amount, currency and date and the bank account to which the deposit was made. All major cred it cards are accepted.

Please contact the Institutional adv ancement Division at: iad_mona@alumni.uwi.edu for more information.

Donate online at www.alumnionli

ne.uwi.edu/donatenow

Naming opportunities for individu als and corporations, or tributes in memoriam at The Univ ersity of the West Indies, are available to contributors .

For donations in the USA: The American Foundation for The University of the West Indies Tax status: The AFUWI is a 501 (c) (3) tax-exempt organisation and gifts are tax-ded uctible to the full extent of state and federal laws in the USA . Cheques should be made payable to the American Fou ndation for the UWI.

Show Your “Pelican Pride” and Don

ate Today!

23

Accolades

Prof. Terrence Forrester, Professor of Experimental Medicine and Director of the Tropical Medicine Research Institute received the Gold Musgrave Medal in Kingston, Jamaica, for his contribution to science. Professor Forrester unified four research units across the UWI campuses when he spearheaded the formation of the Tropical Medical Research Institute, which merged the Tropical Metabolism Research Unit, the Sickle Cell Research Unit and the Epidemiology Research Unit at UWI Mona, and the Chronic Disease Research Unit in Barbados. He also received the 2010 UWI Mona award for most outstanding researcher and is acknowledged to be a clinical scientist of exceptional ability who specialises in investigating the causes of hypertension and cardiovascular diseases.

UWI Graduate becomes 2010

Rhodes Scholar

UWI graduate and medical doctor, David Walcott, is this year’s recipient of the highly acclaimed Rhodes Scholarship award. Dr. Walcott is a doctor at the Kingston Public Hospital (KPH) in Jamaica and was selected from a field of eight candidates, comprising five males and three females. He will go on to Oxford University in the United Kingdom to pursue studies in neurosurgery (a medical specialty concerned with the prevention, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation of disorders that affect the nervous system). He said he was honoured to be chosen as the 2011 Rhodes Scholar for Jamaica.

Dr. Walcott has a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery degree (MB BS) from the UWI. He was the UWI Matriculant 2005 (the most qualified candidate entering UWI in 2005); Certificate of Award for Placement on Dean’s List - in recognition of Excellent Academic Performance in MB BS year three (2007/2008) and MB BS year four (2008/2009); and UWI Faculty of Medical Sciences Honour Society Award 2008 and 2009. He also received the Overall Clinical Medal and the Medical Subject Medal in recognition of his outstanding performance in the Caribbean in MB BS Examination 2010; the Aubrey McFarlane Medal in recognition of the candidate with the most outstanding performance in the Mona Campus, UWI in Surgery in MB BS Examination 2010; and the Dr. the Hon. John Hall Prize. He is a member of Christian Living Community, which promotes Christian morals and service to the less fortunate. He is also a member of Jamaica Medical Students Association, and treasurer of the Standing Committee on Reproductive Health including AIDS (SCORA).

Jamaica’s Governor-General, His Excellency the Most Hon. Sir Patrick Allen (left), congratulates Dr. David Walcott (right), the 2011 Rhodes Scholar, at a ceremony on Thursday November 18 at King’s House, Kingston. Looking on at centre is Secretary of the Jamaica Rhodes Selection Committee, Peter Goldson.

The other candidates for the scholarship this year were: Vincent Taylor, a final year student at UWI, Mona; Ricardo Allen, third year student at UWI, Mona; Leanne Welds, graduate of Pomona College, United States; Glaister Leslie, graduate of the Wesleyan University in the United States; and René Gayle, UWI STAT Ambassador (Mona) and final year student at the Norman Manley Law School. Visit Alumni Online http://www.alumnionline.uwi.edu/rhodesscholars to see how many Rhodes Scholars the UWI has produced!

24 21

News

UWI in BERMUDA Bermudians could be offered discounted rates for studies at the UWI as soon as 2011.

Premier Ewart Brown signed a memorandum of understanding with UWI Vice Chancellor, Professor E. Nigel Harris and now students who apply to the UWI and are sponsored through Government will receive a 15 percent discount to attend the University’s three campuses in Jamaica, Trinidad and Barbados. They will also have the option of taking classes online and it is hoped that this will all be in place by next year. The Bermudian Education Minister, the Hon. Elvin James noted that the specifics will be available in time for the application deadline of April 2011. A petition by Bermuda to join the UWI family was unanimously accepted last year.

In accordance with that, Bermuda students were expected to get subsidised rates once the necessary legislative measures were in place, thereby honouring the Government’s promise to contribute to UWI revenues.

Historic MOU Signing in the Bahamas The College of The Bahamas has signed an historic Memorandum of Understanding that establishes the Bahamas Health Sciences Library Consortium, sealing a formal collaboration with the Ministry of Health, the Public Hospitals’ Authority and The University of the West Indies School of Clinical Medicine and Research, The Bahamas. The agreement paves the way for expanded access to digital medical databases and collections, and reference and online health care training resources. The consortium has a formal agreement with EBSCO host Publishing that allows access to online resources for The College of The Bahamas community and medical and health care service providers affiliated with the consortium partners.

This is the first time that parties in library service have come together to pool financial resources to provide access to electronic shared resources to support a specific clientele like the health care sector. This partnership continues to expand 24-hour access to a wide array of electronic collections for the College and now for members of the consortium. As a result of the collaboration, students, lecturers, physicians, nurses and other allied health professionals now have access to the vast library of on-line databases, which now include Health Business Elite, Medline, Nursing Reference Centre, Patient Education Reference Centre, Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection, Rehabilitation Reference Centre and Scientific and Medical Art Imagebase. These databases provide current evidence-based information that can be used for planning, for developing policies and making critical decisions.

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25

Campus News

Happenings on the campus you attended Cave Hill The Twelfth Annual FIU Eric Williams Memorial Lecture took place on October 15, 2010 focusing on the Reconstruction of Haiti. Former Jamaica Prime Minister P. J. Patterson delivered the lecture titled, “The Renaissance of Haiti: A Template for Caribbean Integration”, which addressed critical issues pertaining to Haiti’s rebirth and the special responsibility of metropolitan countries to ensure it.

The University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus has been registered with the Barbados Accreditation Council for the period January 1, 2010 to January 1, 2012.

HIV&AIDS Response Programme (UWIHARP) has initiated a Literary Competition for students at the UWI Cave Hill Campus to encourage the production and dissemination of Caribbean short fiction and poetry, and reward promising writers.

The theme for entries to the competition is: Vulnerability and/or Resilience in the Caribbean Context of HIV and AIDS. The competition will consist of two (2) categories: Short Fiction and Poetry. Three winners will be chosen in each category by a panel of distinguished judges. The competition is open to all students, both under- and post-graduate registered at the Cave Hill Campus of The University of the West Indies for the academic year 2009-2010. There is no age limit for participation. For information contact: monique.springer@cavehill.uwi.edu or uwiharp@cavehill.uwi.edu. Winners will be announced on April 15, 2010.

Mona UWI Mona and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) have signed a letter of agreement for a Japan Funds-in-Trust IDB/UWI Child Cohort Study. Funding of US$500,000 will be provided by the Japanese government for a comprehensive exploration of child health and development in Jamaica beginning in 2011. It is expected that the most valuable benefits from the study, entitled JA Kids, will be to provide the academic, health, social and education sectors with information from which to develop national policies and programmes to ensure the best possible outcomes for Jamaican children and families.

“Building Partnerships to Eliminate Gender Based Violence” was the title of the public lecture organised by the Institute for Gender and Development Studies at UWI, Mona. Assistant Commissioner of Police, Novelette Grant, Head, Strategic Review Implementation Team, delivered the lecture on November 25, 2010 at 5:30 p.m. at the Undercroft to mark International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. The presentation of the Dorian Powell Prize 2009/’10 was also made. The prize is made to an outstanding student pursuing a major or minor in Gender and Development at UWI, Mona.

An exhibition dubbed “The Celebration of Haiti” took place on Thursday, November 18, 2010 at 2:15 p.m. It marked The Battle of Vertieres that is the final Battle of the Haitian Revolution on November 18, 1803. It was organised by the Haitian Association at UWI, Mona which consists of a group of twenty-five students of the State University of Haiti.

The President of Colombia, Dr. Juan Manuel Santos Calderon visited the UWI, Mona Campus on Friday, November 19, 2010 at 2:00 p.m. while in Jamaica for an official visit. He delivered a public address at the Assembly Hall on the topic, “Latin America and the Caribbean in the Next Decade”.

The Public Relations Class of 2011 at the Caribbean Institute of Media and Communication (CARIMAC), UWI, Mona is partnering with major private and public sector organisations to promote road safety among UWI, Mona students. The activities are being coordinated through a campaign dubbed, “Wreckage”: Driving for “U” and “WI”. The highlight of this campaign was the staging of an Expo on Thursday, November 18, 2010 at 3:00 p.m. at the Students’ Union, which featured performances by Jamaica’s top recording artistes who have endorsed the “Driving for U and WI” message.

Two members of the UWI Vice Chancellor’s Students Today, Alumni Tomorrow (UWI STAT) programme went to the Cayman Islands from November 15-19, 2010 as part of the UWI STAT mission to promote regional issues and integration and to highlight UWI as the institution of choice. They were Korey Rowe, a Management student at Mona and Siobhan Tuitt, a Montserrat national studying at the Mona Campus. They visited several secondary schools to motivate students to strive for academic excellence and met with the UWI Open Campus Student Guild as well as the UWI alumni to encourage engagement and involvement. They also paid courtesy calls on several Government officials to discuss the CSME, Disaster Mitigation and Risk Management as well as HIV/Aids Prevention among Caribbean youth.

26

Campus News

Happenings on the campus you attended Open Mr. Lincoln Williams, Head of the Social Welfare Training Centre (SWTC), has assumed the position of Director of the Consortium for Social Development and Research (CSDR) from August 1, 2010 and will serve in that office until July 2012. The Directorship of the CSDR is a position which rotates every two years among Heads of the Consortium Units who are willing to offer service in that capacity. The Consortium comprises the Caribbean Child Development Centre (CCDC); the Hugh Lawson Shearer Trade Union Education Institute (HLSTUEI); the SWTC and the Women and Development Unit (WAND).

Mr. Donald Hugh Roberts became Head of the Hugh Lawson Shearer Trade Union Education Institute (HLSTUEI) on October 1, 2010. Mr. Roberts spent most of his career working within the trade union movement in Jamaica and is recognised nationally and regionally as an outstanding trade unionist who has contributed extensively to the development of the field in Jamaica. Mr. Roberts has been the recipient of numerous awards, accreditations and memberships, including: the Order of Distinction, Commander Class 2009; the Ministry of Education and Culture’s Outstanding Parent Award and the Kingston Technical High School Alumni Award for outstanding contribution in the field of trade unionism.

OPEN CAMPUS BELIZE HOLDS COUNTRY CONFERENCE UWI has a mandate to educate and the country conference was designed to bring the Belizean public together and to share information on various topics under the main theme, “Building our Nation’s sustainability through education, culture and technology” as they relate to the Belize situation. International presenters as well as local presenters focused on the topics and developed very concrete recommendations for the various sectors to start implementing.

NEW HEAD FOR OPEN CAMPUS ST. KITTS & NEVIS Mrs. Susan Sarah Owen (commonly known as Sarah) is the new Head of the St. Kitts & Nevis UWI Open Campus site. She holds a Masters degree from UWI Cave Hill and will focus on expanding and promoting the work and services of the UWI and the Open Campus in St. Kitts & Nevis. Her energy as well as her knowledge and experience in the higher education sector, particularly in the area of cultural studies will be a great asset. Mrs. Owen was formerly an Instructor in the Faculty of Humanities at the Cave Hill Campus in Barbados.

As a technical writing expert, she marked the English Language Proficiency Test for Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean and moderated the marking of English courses for tertiary level institutions in the Eastern Caribbean. Prior to that, Mrs. Owen also tutored an introductory course in critical literary analysis at the former School of Continuing Studies at The Pine in Barbados. Mrs. Owens also holds a special interest in film and film production.

Answers: 1963 PVC and Principal, St. Augustine Campus, Prof. Clement Sankat

When was the UWI Cave Hill Campus established?

Guess who?

Describing himself as “Trini to the flesh but UWI to the bone” he recalls that he had entered the St. Augustine Campus in 1969 as an engineering student.

27

Campus News

Happenings on the campus you attended St. Augustine 50TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATED A week-long observance to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the St. Augustine Campus, was held in October 2010 and Principal Clement Sankat said the campus must remain very competitive through a clear and distinctive focus on quality as it becomes more responsive to the marketplace. He said that the UWI, in his estimation, had surpassed the expectations of its founding fathers as UWI has produced leaders both male and female of international repute. He also said that he was heartened that the campus had attained its Jubilee while he was Principal as he has seen how it has grown and how it has supported national and regional development. He feels that he was part of the journey. A panel discussion, entitled “The Future of the University”, was one of the highlights of the Jubilee celebration. It featured contributions by prolific masman Peter Minshall, former Head of the Public Service Reginald Dumas, President of the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce Catherine Kumar and others. President George Maxwell Richards and his wife Dr. Jean Ramjohn-Richards hosted a reception at President’s House in St. Ann’s and the alumni reconnected through “The Gathering,” an all-inclusive fete held on the grounds of the Principal’s office, St. Augustine Campus, which featured performances by Stalin, Ravi B and Karma, Birdsong and Roy Cape with Blaxx.

BIODIVERSITY AT UWI ST. AUGUSTINE Biodiversity is the degree of variation of life forms within a given ecosystem, biome, or on an entire planet. 2010 is the International Year of Biodiversity. Professor Andrew Lawrence who is the academic lead for the Edulink Biodiversity Project at the UWI, said the planet’s efforts to preserve biodiversity are below the targets set at the last major world conference in 2002. His professorial inaugural lecture entitled: “Sex and Drugs and Rock & Roll—Biorhythms, Biodiversity, Bioprospecting and Sustainable Development Opportunities for the Caribbean”, called for the Caribbean to work to preserve the region’s coral reefs, as they were being rapidly depleted.

He noted reef associated tourism in Tobago contributed to US$100-US$130 million per year in 2006 and according to the World Resources Institute coral reefs in Tobago have an estimated annual value of US$160 million in tourism, fisheries and shoreline protection which is about half the gross domestic product of Tobago. Sustainable development and consumption will help avert ecological concerns and Lawrence encouraged everyone to practice the three Rs: reduce, reuse and recycle.

28

Campus News

Happenings on the campus you attended A new Caribbean Competitiveness Centre will be created with a US$750,000 grant from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development at the UWI St. Augustine Campus. The agreement was signed by IDB Caribbean Department Manager Gerard Johnson and Professor E. Nigel Harris, Vice Chancellor of the UWI. It will provide intellectual leadership on issues related to private sector development and competitiveness by increasing the institutional capacity to generate and share world-class and Caribbean-specific knowledge on private sector development and competitiveness. UWI is fully committed to strengthening research capabilities and training to support private sector development and competitiveness in the region,” said the Vice Chancellor and he noted: “The establishment of this centre will put UWI at the forefront of the debate on policies to promote private sector development.”

Filmmaker and Caribbean Awards for Excellence Laureate, Robert Yao Ramesar delivered the inaugural public lecture in the UWI Anthony N Sabga Caribbean Awards distinguished lecture series. The feature address was titled, “The Story Made Light: Yao Ramesar and the Language of Caribbean Film” and took take place on September 13. The Caribbean Awards Laureates are chosen based on the quality of their work, in keeping with the stated goal of the Anthony N Sabga Caribbean Awards, to honour distinguished Caribbean citizens who exemplify Caribbean life. Ramesar (BA, MFA Film Directing) is a Lecturer in Film at the UWI (St. Augustine), and he remains a cornerstone of the emerging local and regional film culture.

Dr. Harrinath D. Maharajh has been made a professor in the Department of Clinical Medicine at UWI, St. Augustine. He did his internship at the Port-of-Spain General Hospital from 1978 to 1979. He became the senior lecturer in psychiatry at the UWI in 2001. Professor Maharajh also acts as a consultant to the School Supervision Unit of the Ministry of Education. In 2000, he was awarded a Chaconia Gold Medal based on his community service.

The UWI Seismic Research Centre marked Earth Science Week 2010 with an educational poster display on earthquakes and other geo-hazards at the National Library, Port-of-Spain (Young Adult Section) in October. The display was free of charge and open to the public and was useful for students interested in the Earth Sciences, and people looking for scientific understanding of earthquakes in Trinidad and Tobago and the Eastern Caribbean. Since October 1998, the US-based American Geological Institute has organised Earth Science Week to promote better appreciation of the value of Earth Science research and its application and relevance to our daily lives.

Caribbean journalists, both practising and prospective, will soon be invited to apply for the new one-year, full-time Certificate in Journalism programme, scheduled to begin at UWI (St. Augustine), Faculty of Humanities and Education, in January, 2011. The Certificate in Journalism is designed for beginners and for practising journalists who want to be prepared to perform more effectively in a 21st century media environment. This programme will have learning activities which will be very experiential in their orientation and one highlight of the programme will be a six-week internship with a media organisation selected by the student and approved by the University. The internship is designed to provide students with authentic experiences of what it is like to work as a journalist. The Certificate in Journalism programme, which has been described as “a collaborative effort” between the University and the media industry, will be staffed by lecturers from the UWI, as well as by highly experienced media practitioners.

Gender and cultural studies Professor, Patricia Mohammed of UWI St. Augustine spoke about Caribbean cultural mythologies of gender in her presentation, “Listening to Paintings: Cultural Mythologies of Gender in the Caribbean”, as a part of the Caribbean Lecture Series on November 11, 2010. Mohammed’s research explores the ways Caribbean people’s understanding of class, ethnic and gender identities influences the culturally specific ways in which they produce and live.

She is interested in visuality and the reading of the image, whether still or moving, and in understanding what the Caribbean has created as an aesthetic as a result of its peculiar New World history.

29

Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies

News from CERMES Future of Reefs in a Changing Environment (FORCE) Project During the week of September 13-17, 2010, the Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies (CERMES) staff (Robin Mahon, Patrick McConney) and students (Rachel Allen, David Gill and Angelie Peterson) traveled to England to attend the annual meeting for the Livelihoods and Governance work packages of the Future of Reefs in a Changing Environment (FORCE) project. It was deemed an important step in forging relationships that will be expanded through continued collaboration throughout the 4-year project. There are areas where the overlaps of governance and livelihoods aspects of the FORCE project will be highly integrated, such as during the field data collection. The meetings took place at the University of Exeter and Newcastle University. Much emphasis was spent on discussing management tools, drivers of reef health, constraints on governance, and to a large extent the breadth that each of these could include. The time in England was a big step forward in learning the intimate workings of the FORCE project, allowing the building of a common understanding and approach to executing the activities of this promising project.

Submitted by Rachel Allen and Angelie Peterson (Edited)

2010 Shell Scholarship Jenna Blackwood is the Shell/UWI Postgraduate Scholarship winner for 2010. Jenna is using the scholarship to pursue a Ph.D. in Water Resources Management with a focus on stormwater management.

She noted the extremes of weather patterns as an example of the need for additional research. She is a CERMES graduate who specialised in Coastal and Marine Resource Management. David Chapman, Caribbean Cluster Country Chairman for Shell Western Trading and Supply presented Jenna with the scholarship at an official ceremony held at the 3Ws Pavilion, UWI, Cave Hill on September 28, 2010. A Memorandum of Understanding between Shell and UWI was also signed by Mr. Chapman and Professor V. Eudine Barriteau, Deputy Principal of UWI. UWI has seen rapid growth in the number of graduate students attending over the last few years which is crucial to the University’s core purpose for creating and disseminating new knowledge. Of note, Shell is the only non-government sponsor of the 20 postgraduate scholarships recently introduced by the University.

Submitted by Katherine Blackman (Edited)

Publications and technical reports Publication and technical report production is growing at CERMES. Recent publications include: • Mahon, R., L. Fanning, P. McConney and R. Pollnac. 2010. Governance characteristics of large marine ecosystems. Marine Policy 34: 919-927.

• Oxenford, H.A., C. Gooding, J. Walcott, T. Staskiewicz and H. Valles. 2010. Assessment of the queen conch, Strombus gigas, in Barbados. Report prepared for the Natural Heritage Department and the Environment Unit, Ministry of Environment, Water Resources and Drainage, Government of Barbados. 49 pp.

Submitted by Maria Pena (Edited)

30

Tributes

In Celebration of Their Lives Theresa Flanagan Marie Wilmot, popularly called ‘Terry’, was a strong woman who made everyone laugh and feel at ease. She was the sister of the Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Education at UWI (Mona), Swithin Wilmot. She furthered her education at the Alpha Academy where she was appointed Head Girl, before earning a History honours degree at UWI. Wilmot worked for more than two decades with the Jamaica National Heritage Trust and the Institute of Jamaica, respectively.

She was also known as a respected historian.

Mrs. Joyce Gibson-Inniss (affectionately called ‘Ma Inniss’ by her ‘hall-mates’) became the Housekeeper at Milner Hall at UWI St. Augustine in 1955. She also served as the Campus Domestic Bursar of the St. Augustine Campus in charge of the JFK Cafeteria and all the halls of residence until her retirement in 1991. The hall of residence at the Faculty of Medical Sciences in Mount Hope was officially named the “Joyce Gibson-Inniss Hall of Residence” in 2001.

Prominent economist and educator, Guyanese born, Dr. Rawle Farley, 88, was the founder and first chairperson of the Department of Economics at SUNY Brockport, and was named Professor Emeritus in 1995. He was the author of a number of seminal works that helped shape the study of the economics of the developing world, including “The Economics of Latin America: Development Problems in Perspective” (Harper & Row, 1972). In the 2007 cultural history “Breaking Down the Walls”

by Howard Fergus, Lennox Bernard and Judith Soares, the authors described Dr. Farley as “a visionary leader with the courage to challenge the existing system and its standards”. He earned a Ph.D. from the University of London, and attended Oxford University. Dr. Farley taught for over a decade at the University College of the West Indies (now known as The University of the West Indies) founding and participating in academic programmes across the Caribbean. In Belize, he helped institute the first Belizean UCWI campus, founded the Festival of One-Act Plays and the British Honduras National Festival of the Arts.

Among his many academic and government posts, he served as a United Nations economic development and planning expert in Libya. Dr. Farley was a highly-ranked chess player, well known for playing and winning tournaments.

31

Chancellor’s Column The University Oooooooooooooooo

of the West Indies Vice Chancellor’s Presidents Club

UWIAA - Presidents Mr. Ricardo Knight - Barbados Frank “Paco” Smith - Belize Dr. Marcia Potter - British Virgin Islands Mrs. Leonora Wynter - Cayman Islands Mrs. A. Missouri Sherman-Peter Commonwealth of The Bahamas Mrs. Yvanette Baron-George - Dominica Mrs. Margaret Barrett - Florida Mr. A. Gilbert Bellamy - Jamaica Mrs. Delmaude Ryan - Montserrat Dr. Gerald White-Davis - New York Mrs. Cicely Jacobs (Acting) - St. Kitts & Nevis Ms. Daisy Rose (Acting) - St. Lucia Mr. Randy Boucher - St. Vincent & the Grenadines Mr. Ferdinand Fortune and Mr Michael Henville - Toronto Mr. Mark Regis - Trinidad & Tobago Mr. Vernon Barrett - United Kingdom Ms. Sha-Shana Crichton - Washington DC UWIAA - Past Presidents Ms. Maxine McClean - Barbados Prof. Frank Alleyne - Barbados Dr. Lisa Johnson - Belize Mr. Frederick Sandiford - Belize Dr. Kedrick Pickering - British Virgin Islands Mrs. Deborah Ann Chambers - Cayman Ms. Irma Edwards - Dominica Mr. Anthony Williams - Florida Mr. Ronald White - Florida Prof. Marcia Magnus - Florida Ms. Claudia Halley - Grenada Mrs. Nadine Marriott - Jamaica Mrs. Patricia Sutherland - Jamaica Prof. Neville Ying - Jamaica Mrs. Beverley Pereira - Jamaica Mrs. Brenda Skeffrey - Jamaica Dr. Cameron Wilkinson - St. Kitts & Nevis Mrs. Candia Williams - Montserrat Ms. Laurine Fenton - Montserrat Ms. Sheree Jemmotte - Montserrat Dr. Hazel Carter - New York Dr. Caroline Lawrence - St. Kitts & Nevis Mr. Nkrumah Lucien - St. Lucia Ms. Maud Fuller - Toronto Mr. James Richardson - Trinidad & Tobago

Mr. Jerry Medford - Trinidad & Tobago Mr. Frederick Bowen - Trinidad & Tobago Mr. Ulric Warner - Trinidad & Tobago Mr. Daniel Sankar - Trinidad & Tobago Prof. Franklin Knight - Washington DC UWIMAA - Presidents Dr. Michael Charles - Barbados Dr. Karl Massiah - Canada Dr. Homer Bloomfield - Commonwealth of The Bahamas Dr. Victor Boodhoo - Florida (Central) Dr. Aileen Standard-Goldson - Jamaica Dr. Deo Singh - Trinidad & Tobago Dr. Gerry Groves - USA Tri-State UWIMAA - Past Presidents Dr. Jeff Massay - Barbados Dr. Michael Hoyos - Barbados Dr. Robin Roberts - Commonwealth of The Bahamas Dr. Cecil Aird - Florida (Central) Dr. Novelle Kirwan - Florida (Central) Dr. Anna Matthews - Jamaica Dr. Peter Fletcher - Jamaica Dr. Sonia Henry-Heywood - Jamaica Dr. Richard Whitelocke - Jamaica Dr. Nadia Williams - Jamaica Dr. Wendel Guthrie - Jamaica Dr. R. E. David Thwaites - Jamaica Dr. Vijay Naraynsingh - Trinidad & Tobago Dr. Godfrey Rajkuma - Trinidad & Tobago Dr. Winston Mitchell - USA Tri-State Dr. Hardat Sukhdeo - USA Tri-State Dr. Kathleen Watson - USA Tri-State UWIGNA (Canada) - President Ms. Millicent Robb UWIGNA (Canada) - Past President Ms. Sybil Bent UWIEA - Regional Contact Eng. Dr. David Smith UWIEA - Former Representatives Eng. Hopeton Heron - Jamaica Eng. Clyde Phillip - Trinidad & Tobago

Alumnus and Council Representatives Coordinating Office Institutional Advancement Division iad.mona@alumni.uwi.edu For Aug 1, 2009 - July 31, 2011

For Aug 1, 2010 - July 31, 2011

Alumnus Representative Mr. Jerry Medford (Trinidad and Tobago)

Council Representative Mr. Frank “Paco” Smith Jr. (Belize)

UWI Alumni Association (UWIAA) Chapters Barbados Belize British Virgin Islands Cayman Commonwealth of The Bahamas Dominica Florida Guyana Jamaica Montserrat New York St. Kitts and Nevis St. Lucia St. Vincent and The Grenadines Toronto Trinidad and Tobago United Kingdom Washington D.C.

UWIAA Alumni Contacts Antigua & Barbuda Grenada Ottawa Suriname Turks & Caicos Islands

Campus Alumni Offices Cave Hill Campus Tel: 246-417-4544 alumnioffice@cave hill.uwi.edu Contact: Mrs. Roseanne Maxwell Mona Campus Tel: 876-927-1583 uwialumni@yahoo.com Contact: Mrs. Charmaine Wright

Open Campus Tel: 246-417-4505 deputyprincipal@open.uwi.edu Contact: Office of the Deputy Principal UWI Open Campus St. Augustine Campus Tel: 868-663-1579, 868-662-2002, Ext: 2099 Charmain.Subero@sta.uwi.edu Contact: Ms. Charmain Subero