JMMB Joan Duncan Foundation Transforms Lives Through J$8M Scholarship Programme
For the new academic year, 105 students, who are financially challenged, can breathe a sigh of relief, knowing that their tuition and other related expenses have been covered by the JMMB Joan Duncan Foundation, through its scholarship programme.
The Foundation this year, awarded J$8 million in scholarships and bursaries to students, mainly at the tertiary level; in addition to students drawn from primary, secondary and special needs institutions.
The tertiary awardees are drawn from all the major local universities including: University of the West Indies, Mona (UWI, Mona); University of Technology, Jamaica (UTech, Jamaica); Edna Manley College of the Visual and Performing Arts (EMCVPA); and Northern Caribbean University (NCU).
In sharing more about the scholarship process, which saw over 2800 students applying online, Patricia Sutherland, chairman of the JMMB Joan Duncan Foundation, noted that, in keeping with its commitment to transforming lives, the Foundation made a deliberate decision to provide scholarships to bridge the financial gap and assist individuals to unearth their greatness, in spite of the academic accolades of the applicants. Adding, “We recognized that there is a gap that is not readily being filled, resulting in a significant number of financially-challenged students not being able to benefit from the financial assistance available, because they are not in the top percentile of their class, although they are average or above average students. As such, the Foundation’s scholarship considers the holistic applicant, including: strong leadership potential; involvement in several extracurricular activities or charitable organizations, combined with sufficient academic aptitude and the financial circumstances of the applicant.”
Sutherland adds, “We are proud that our investment has reaped great rewards in the lives of our young people and has had a rippling effect - inspiring their families, peers and communities, and other youth who may also have similar challenges. Many of our scholarship recipients have risen to the top, amidst challenges of poverty, death of loved ones, sickness and other socially-debilitating problems. They have (instead) unlocked their greatness, recognizing that ordinary people do extraordinary things, ( living true)words of wisdom, shared by my late mother, Joan Duncan,” in whose honour the Foundation is named.
The Foundation chairman revealed, “A few of our success stories come to mind such as: Kristeena Monteith, who has gone on to achieve even greater success, furthering her studies in communication as a 2018 Chevening scholar; Shevar Ellis, who was the first university graduate in his family and, now, his sibling is following in his footsteps at Utech; and Stacey-Ann Bailey, a former ward of the state, who is now pursuing further studies and coaching a college netball team, overseas. She has become an ambassador, of sorts, sharing her story with other wards of the state, encouraging them to be possibility-thinkers. These are a just few of the recipients who have excelled, and we have many more success stories, whose lives have been transformed by the relationships, conversations and opportunities presented, as a result of the scholarship.”
The underlying principle of transformation is deeply rooted in the scholarship process; as such, all recipients of the scholarship are given the opportunity to participate in a transformational leadership workshop. This workshop seeks to explore: self-awareness; reflection paradigm-shifting; critical-thinking; and visioning, among other areas. Sutherland shared, “through the workshop, the Foundation is able to share tools with the recipients so that they can be empowered to achieve their dreams; enabling them to live more powerful lives and unlock their true potential.” For this year, the workshop is slated for October.
As a signal of its commitment to education and investment in the local talent pool, the Foundation has awarded over J$20 million in scholarships to approximately 200 students at primary, secondary, tertiary and special needs institutions, over the last three (3) years. In addition, JMMB Group, through its Foundation, established a US$1 million endowment at UWI in 2016; in response to the university’s call for funding towards research, teaching and to drive regional development. Sixty-five percent (65%) of this endowment will be allocated toward scholarships to undergraduate and graduate students at the Mona School of Business and Management, in perpetuity, so that the Caribbean region can continue to engender rich talent, innovation and business acumen.