21-Year-Old Overcomes Loss, Developmental Delay to Earn G-G Achievement Award
By: , July 5, 2023
Photo: Donald De La Haye
Recipient of the Governor-General’s Achievement Awards (GGAA), Ibrahim Duffus, proudly holds the plaque he received for academic excellence, leadership and community service at the 2023 National Presentation Ceremony held at King’s House on Thursday (June 29).The Full Story
Twenty-one-year-old Ibrahim Duffus personifies resilience in the face of tragedy, seizures and developmental delay.
He was raised in an economically disadvantaged family with parents who fervently instilled in him the transformative power of education.
Mr. Duffus’ excellent academic achievements, coupled with his steadfast voluntary service to the academic community, earned him one of the prestigious Governor-General’s Achievement Awards (GGAA) on June 29.
He recalled being on an “emotional high” when he received the letter informing him that he was one of the 37 award recipients.
“It was a joyous experience and I could not exchange it for anything else. It is one of those moments that I will never forget in my life,” he said at the awards ceremony.
Mr. Duffus said the GGAA is special because it came after he had experienced a series of setbacks and disappointments related to his applications to international universities.
Come September, he will commence his final year of studies, majoring in molecular biology with a minor in statistics at the University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona.
He told JIS News that he was nominated by 2023 Rhodes Scholar and 2021 GGAA awardee, David Salmon, who was confident that he would be successful.
On the other hand, Mr. Duffus was doubtful, especially after he learned that there was a record number of applications.
The awardees were chosen from more than 700 nominations, which were reviewed by parish selection committees.
Mr. Duffus has come a long way since his childhood years, where he suffered from seizures, which required his parents to keep a close watch on him even as he slept, and also experienced an 18-month developmental delay.
He had his last seizure at seven years old and has been on par with peers his age for well over a decade.
At Wolmer’s High School for Boys, his scholastic achievements were truly exemplary. He secured nine Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) subjects with distinctions, and 10 grade ones with distinctions and one grade 2 at the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) level.
He served as a prefect, then assistant senior prefect as well as secretary of the environmental club, where he promoted healthy eating habits through fruit sales initiatives.
After sixth form, Mr. Duffus took a gap year to launch a peer-tutoring programme for students preparing for external exams in biology, chemistry and mathematics.
With his assistance, the successes of many students were amplified, inspiring him to continue his volunteerism in tutoring at UWI.
His outstanding academic performance won him the title of Top 2021 UWI Matriculant, which saw him being awarded the prestigious UWI Open Full Scholarship.
Mere months into his university tenure, he was dealt a painful blow when he suffered the tragic loss of his father to prostate cancer.
“My father was a pillar in my life. My father was someone whom I saw every day, and I spent most of my time with him,” he said in a low tone.
He recalled that it was challenging to grieve the loss of his father while preparing for examinations, noting that he failed the first paper he sat.
“I knew that if I was to lose the UWI Open Scholarship because of poor performance, that it would hit my mother even harder. We have always been financially challenged and receiving the UWI Open Scholarship was a blessing because that year, it wasn’t open for application. If it wasn’t for the scholarship, my parents wouldn’t even know where to get the first cent to pay for the semester,” he explained.
Despite the loss, Mr. Duffus has consistently maintained a grade point average (GPA) above 3.6.
He expressed gratitude to his mother and older sister for the instrumental role they have and continue to play in helping him to achieve his full potential.
His father’s passing and influence has inspired him to become a research scientist, determined to contribute to cancer research.
Mr. Duffus also told JIS News that he wants to impact the special needs community through the SE-A-WAY project and reinforce his commitment to improving the lives of Jamaicans.
The GGAA was established in 1991 and, to date, a total of 944 Jamaicans have received the prestigious award.