Sam Sharpe College Committed to Preparing Leaders – Gow-Morrison

Acting Principal of Sam Sharpe Teachers’ College in St. James, Dr. Lorna Gow-Morrison, says the institution is committed to fostering the total development of students and preparing them to assume leadership roles in the society.

“We can now safely say that Sam Sharpe Teachers’ College has become the maker of leaders who are more than capable of taking Jamaica to a new frontier laced with peace and prosperity,” she said.

Dr. Gow-Morrison added that the institution continues to thrive on providing a consistently high standard of training to produce professionals dedicated to rendering “altruistic service and to be formidable change agents in the global environment”.

“These professionals are empowered with the relevant knowledge, skills, values, attitudes and pedagogy to be effective in their various fields and are also able to cope with the challenges,” she noted.

Dr. Gow-Morrison, who was addressing a Think Tank at the JIS’s regional office in Montego Bay, recently, said that the institution’s focus on training and development extends to its staff.

She noted that investment has been made in a staff college where auxiliary workers and other members of staff are able to pursue courses to advance themselves educationally.

“This is an opportunity many of them have been seizing with both hands. What we are seeing nowadays is that a lot of persons have bought into the importance of upgrading themselves to be more marketable and to have a fighting chance of getting better-paying jobs,” she said.

Dr. Gow-Morrison told JIS News that the school has developed “a strong love affair” with the community of Granville, where it is located.

“The people of Granville are very much into what we are doing over here at Sam Sharpe Teachers’ College. We have students from the community and also from neighbouring areas coming here, and we take our responsibility as educators very seriously,” she noted.

Turning to other matters, she mentioned plans for the establishment of a mathematics laboratory to benefit students and teachers. The facility is scheduled to become operational in September 2018.

“Also, to widen access through communication and to promote critical thinking, we will be collaborating with other tertiary institutions here in western Jamaica to host what will be known as The Western Debates,” Dr. Gow-Morrison added.

“This is something we are working on and which will be a reality. We have also already embarked on a programme known as ‘Cocktails and Conversations’ where we are looking at topical issues to engage the Montego Bay community in dialogue. This forum is held quarterly and we already have had two,” she indicated.

Sam Sharp Teachers’ College, the only one of its kind in western Jamaica, began operations on September 29, 1975, when it admitted its first 150 students. Today, it has approximately 600 students enrolled.