Education

NAB & NTI Sign MOU To Train 600 Workers

A memorandum of understanding (MOU) has been initialled between the National Assistance Board (NAB) and the National Transformation Initiative (NTI) that will see some 600 persons trained over the next 10 weeks.

The signing, which took place yesterday at the Warrens Office Complex between the Director of NTI, Allyson Leacock and NAB’s Director, Colleen Walcott, aims to help the latter organisation achieve its goal of improving its human resources and provide training for workers to better enhance the delivery and quality of its services.

This was pointed out by Ms. Walcott as she spoke to media representatives. “Workers were asking for training not necessarily [in terms of] technical training but in terms of communication and engaging with diverse clients. And, our beneficiaries were asking for an improvement in service in terms of how our workers engaged with them. So, the focus was not necessarily on the technical skills but more so on the relational skills,” she disclosed.

Adding that the training methodology would see persons immersing themselves in the care aspects, she said this would follow the guiding principles of empathy and compassion and not just be about “doing a task” or providing a need. “But really caring for lives – putting persons back at the centre of care,” she stated.

The NTI training, which started today with 60 persons, makes use of the face-to-face format as, according to Ms. Walcott, the NAB wants its workers to “to be really, really, really engaged”.

Meanwhile, NTI’s Dr. Leacock, describing the partnership as a significant one, said it represents a collaboration that NTI considers an “unprecedented step” in its commitment to enhancing the quality of care provided by Home Help Employees and the Companions in the Community of Elder Care.

The NAB, she revealed, was now joining the Grantley Adams International Airport, which piloted this initiative of the Art and Heart of Service. Adding that, to date, NTI had trained over 800 workers at the airport, through this programme, she remarked: “So, as we embark on this journey, as Director Walcott said, it is an exciting partnership but also a very meaningful one based on the data that we are becoming an older population and therefore this work is pivotal to who we are, as a country and as a people.”

Dr. Leacock noted that a key aim is to realise a shift from a culture of servitude to one of service. Elaborating Dr. Leacock said: “It’s more than a change of mindset and we place a lot of emphasis on that. It is also a fundamental reimagining of what it means to serve. It’s about infusing dignity, respect, and excellence…. ensuring that our most vulnerable citizens receive the care and the consideration they deserve.

*Director of NTI, Allyson Leacock described the partnership with the National Assistance Board as a significant one.*

She also stated that one of the key components of the training for NAB staffers will be about understanding and practising disability etiquette.

“We emphasise that service culture must be rooted in a culture of consideration. And, at its core this means recognising that we all have abilities and disabilities, and our approach must be one of empathy and respect for individual differences.”

Dr. Leacock stressed by adopting this perspective would not only enhance the quality of care but also promote a far more inclusive Barbados.

The NTI training will also focus on ethics, integrity, deportment, personal branding, communication, and teamwork. Noting these are elements of personal excellence, she added: “So our training will equip our home help workers as well as our community elder care companions with the skills to present themselves with confidence and professionalism, communicating effectively and most importantly working cohesively as a team, based on the Ministry’s plans for amalgamation.

“This holistic approach, we hope, will ensure that they are not only prepared to meet the physical needs of those they are caring for but also to uplift their own spirits and enhance their overall wellbeing. (PR/GIS)

Education

Barbados Cops Two Silver Medals At Caribbean STEM Olympiads

Barbados won two silver medals in the Math Olympiad component of the Caribbean Science Foundation’s (CSF) third annual Caribbean STEM Olympiads (CSO) held virtually from January 13 to 19, 2025.

Individuals and teams representing educational institutions or themselves competed in Math, Computer Coding, and Robotics & Electronics Systems Olympiads at three different age levels – 12 to 15, 16 to 18, and 19 to 21.

Fifteen-year-old Roshauna Clarke of Harrison College took second place in Level I of the Math Olympiad, while Simeon Green and Ian Francis of “Phi-re Phi-ghters”, who represented themselves but attend The University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, placed second in Level III of the competition.

Interim Executive Director of the CSF, Professor Cardinal Warde, said: “I am impressed by the level of achievement of the participants. However, it is clear that the CSF needs to do more to enhance the quantity and quality of robotics and embedded systems in the region.

“To aid those Robotics & Electronics Systems teams that start early in preparation for the 2026 Olympiads, the CSF will issue a call for proposals to assist such teams in covering the upfront costs of components.”

Simeon Green of “Phi-re Phi-ghters” spoke about his experience. He said: “We really enjoyed preparing by doing a lot of practice, and even during the competition. Just the rigour of the Math we had to do was really interesting. You should have seen our faces when [we] got the question done. We really enjoyed participating.”

In the various competitions, the focus was on rewarding inventiveness, as well as critical, logical, and analytical thinking. In particular, the Math Olympiad was held in a Jeopardy-style format and covered the fundamentals of topics ranging from consumer Arithmetic to Vector Calculus.

The Computer Coding Olympiad tasked applicants with creating apps, games, and websites aimed at solving a challenge faced by Caribbean communities.

The challenges tackled by teams in the 2025 Olympiads included geohazards and climate change, cultural preservation, conservation science and ecology, inter and intra-country transportation, food safety and security, safe after-hours transport for women and youth, and financial education.

The Robotics & Electronics Systems Olympiad saw the Level I applicants building innovative systems from kits, while the Level III robotics and electronics systems teams were required to design and assemble their robots starting from the basic components level.

A total of 264 students from nine Caribbean countries registered for the 2025 Olympiads, making it the highest registration to date. After the preliminary rounds, 41 teams (98 students) made it to the finals. There were 34 finalists in the Math Olympiad, 39 in the Computer Coding Olympiad, and 25 in the Robotics & Electronics Systems Olympiad.

Medal certificates and cash prizes of US$500, $400, $300, and $200 were awarded to teams winning platinum, gold, silver, and bronze medals, respectively. The medals and awards ceremony, held on Sunday, January 19, revealed that Jamaica led the medal count with 10 medals, followed by Belize and Guyana with four each, and Barbados, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago with two each.

The CSF is a regional, non-profit non-governmental organisation with the mission of assisting with the development and diversification of the economies of the Caribbean region by promoting STEM education reform and stimulating technology-based entrepreneurship. (PR/GIS)

Education

MOU SIGNED BETWEEN A & B MUSIC SUPPLIES AND THE UWI

Veteran music industry leader Norman Barrow believes that creativity, not competition, should be encouraged on the local music scene in order for the Barbadian brand to better penetrate overseas markets.
Barrow shared these views during a recent signing ceremony of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between his company, A&B Music Supplies, and the University of the West Indies (UWI) Cave Hill Campus, said that sticking to the “traditional” ways of making and marketing music will not help local artists reach a global audience.
He said: “I am hoping that the opportunities provided for aspiring creatives will produce a different way of thinking, which will encourage them to realise that competing for a prize is not the way for us to get our music into the mainstream of international recognition.
“We must work together to make sure our music has global appeal. Machel Montano recently said: ‘We must improve the quality of our music, our writing, our marketing, and the quality of our message.'”
He explained, “I have always held the view that one of the main reasons that reggae music was able to become a recognised genre in the world of music, is because the Jamaican artistes never competed, and their writings were never guided by a set of rules. They were free to produce music that appealed to the world.”
He emphasized the need for a shift in focus, stating that while he respects past efforts, it is time to create music that can be marketed globally, which he described as essential for Barbados’ future.
The MOU establishes a partnership aimed at supporting students in the Faculty of Culture, Creative and Performing Arts by providing scholarships and other resources. It also includes the establishment of the Norman Barrow Digital Archives; this new archive is aimed at storing music Barrow has produced over the years across the region, and giving easy access to students who are seeking to further their research into varying genres.