Special Needs Students to Be Certified in Cosmetology
By: , May 7, 2025
Photo: ADRIAN WALKER
Minister of Education, Skills, Youth and Information, Senator Dr. the Hon. Dana Morris Dixon (right), in conversation with Acting Principal of Randolph Lopez School of Hope, Kayda Benjamin (left), and Executive Director of the Jamaica Association of Intellectual Disabilities, Marilyn McCoy, on Read Across Jamaica Day, Tuesday (May 6) at the St. Andrew-based institution.The Full Story
Minister of Education, Skills, Youth and Information, Senator Dr. the Hon. Dana Morris Dixon, has committed to partnering with the HEART/NSTA Trust to certify students at Randolph Lopez School of Hope in Cosmetology.
Established in 1956, it is the largest and oldest institution serving children with intellectual disabilities in Jamaica and the English-speaking Caribbean.
“We truly believe that many of them can go on to have jobs. I went over into their cosmetology department and it was clear that they’re doing fantastic things. They do hair, they do nails, they do everything and they want to be certified. They [their teachers] want to give the children certification through HEART, and so we’ve committed to working with them to get that to happen,” Dr. Morris Dixon said, in an interview with JIS News.
The commitment was made during her visit to the St. Andrew-based institution in observance of Read Across Jamaica Day, on Tuesday (May 6).
Dr. Morris Dixon also read to students at Constitution Hill Primary and Infant School, also in the parish.
“They wanted more books; they wanted a few more resources, and there’s some other infrastructure things that they would like and we’ve committed to do that,” she said.
The Minister added that the administrators requested more fans for their classrooms.
Dr. Morris Dixon advised that their Member of Parliament, the Most Hon. Juliet Holness, has promised to provide the fans.