The Jamaica Public Service (JPS) Company Foundation has paid the examination fees of 514 students registered to sit the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) Industrial Technology (Electrical) examination in 2021.
The cheque for more than $2 million was handed over by the Foundation to the Overseas Examinations Commission (OEC), at the JPS head office in New Kingston, on Wednesday (December 9).
Education, Youth and Information Minister, Hon. Fayval Williams, thanked the Foundation for covering the fees of the students for another academic year.
“This is a welcome move, given that over the past few years, Jamaica has moved to position technical and vocational education and training (TVET) into the mainstream of education systems and setting it as a priority in our education agenda,” the Minister said.
“The objectives of the Foundation’s CSEC Electrical and Electronic Technology Exam Fee Sponsorship programme are in sync with the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information’s thrust to have high-school students sit at least one skill-based subject at the CSEC level,” she added.
Mrs. Williams also noted that greater emphasis is being placed on project-based and problem-solving learning, with science, technology, engineering and mathematics or science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics (STEM/STEAM) being integrated at all levels.
In his remarks, President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), JPS, Michel Gantios, said the company is committed to investing in the future leaders of Jamaica.
“We are happy to contribute in any small degree to the development of the country,” he said.
Deputy Chairman of the JPS Foundation, Ramsay McDonald, said this is the fifth year that the Foundation has been undertaking the payment of examination fees for high-school students sitting the subject.
“Our objective is to help develop the best minds and encourage excellence in the field of energy,” he said.
For his part, Examinations Officer, CSEC and Caribbean Vocational Qualifications (CVQ), OEC, Tanjay Holmes, thanked the power company for its continued support of the education sector.
“The OEC believes in the power of public-private partnerships to provide opportunities for students to achieve in an area where they might not otherwise have been able. We are grateful to the Foundation and are proud to partner with our parent Ministry to facilitate this process,” the Examinations Officer said.
Since the introduction of the programme in 2016, the Foundation has paid more than $8 million in CSEC Industrial Technology (Electrical) examination fee grants for more than 2,300 students.