BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – ORNGEL VANESSA ERSKINE, the young scholar who was grossly embarrassed by an error purportedly made by management of the Clarence Fitzroy Bryan College (CFBC), has graduated summa cum laude from the Monroe College in New Rochelle, New York, USA with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Hospitality.
Erskine, who graduated on Saturday, June 8, 2013, completed the two-year programme in one year and achieved ‘A’ grades in all 18 courses.
She was on the President’s List and also won the Pride and Professional Award for her excellent performance in the Second of three Semesters.
Sharing her experience prior to and during her studies at Monroe College, Erskine spoke to the trials and challenges she faced and the many hurdles she successfully crossed.
“After the incident at CFBC, I had to struggle to get a student’s loan. I went all over the Federation in an attempt to get two guarantors, but I was succinctly told by many people that they no longer do that because some students do not return to their homeland after graduation.
“However, God is love, and in August last year my mother and Lindsay Grant had decided to be my guarantors,” the beaming Soho Village resident said.
She also said that she had received US$15 000 from the government to assist in her studies.
The 21-year-old noted that after achieving the loan she had a lot of “running around”, such as travelling to Barbados to obtain a student’s visa, and, in addition to her financial difficulties, time was running out on her.
“This caused me to arrive two weeks late at the college and I had to put in extra work, both night and day, to catch up on the lectures and assignments that I missed. I however managed to pull through. I had to go into overdrive, but I had faith in God and myself and this seemed to have transcended to the professors who all encouraged me along the way. It had also called for a lot of sacrifice, dedication and remaining focused, and those were the factors that brought me success.”
Mother Nature also had an adverse effect on Erskine’s life whilst in college.
“Then there was Hurricane Sandy which caused additional problems for me and my fellow students. We had to move to different hotels because of Sandy’s devastating effect. And whilst moving from one to the other, my laptop with all of my information and finished as well as unfinished assignments was stolen, but another was presented to me by the college in less than two weeks after.”
Despite her trials and tribulations, Erskine said that “by the grace of God and remaining focused”, she had successfully completed the First Semester with straight A’s.
Erskine explained that the degree programme is of four-year duration, but because she had successfully completed the Hospitality Studies programme at the CFBC, Credits were transferred to the college.
“It is a four-year programme but 66 Credits were transferred from the programme I completed at CFBC. If I had not successfully completed the programme at CFBC, I would have had to spend four years at Monroe College in order to complete my Associate degree and the Bachelor’s.
“Additionally, the programme that I have just completed is actually one and a half years, but I was able to complete it in a year because I was thinking about the money that I owe the bank. To complete the programme in the stipulated time would have cost me a lot of money for boarding and lodging, so I decided to save that money by doing extra subjects. In the First Semester, I completed five courses and seven in the Second, while in the Third and final Semester I completed six.”
The young scholar was also ill during a short period of her studies and had been the victim of an unfortunate traffic accident.
“Apart from my Laptop being stolen and the adverse effects of Hurricane Sandy, other challenges were illness and an unfortunate accident. Being unaccustomed to the cold climate, I had collapsed and was in and out of hospital.
“Following that, on Saturday, July 6, I was struck down by a car while on the pedestrian crossing. This resulted in a busted chin, bruises to my hands and knees as well as pain in my head, neck and back. I was taken to the hospital, where I received treatment for my injuries. I also did a number of tests and I am currently on therapy and awaiting the X-ray results for my back. That accident caused me to do badly in one of my exams…I had difficulty in remembering because of the head injury, but I managed to pull through in the final exam and got an A.”
Erskine informed that the incident has reached the court and she does not have to return to New York for the trial because the matter is being handled by her lawyer.
With regard her success both at the CFBC and Monroe College, Erskine would like to thank her mother, Andrea Walwyn; her father, Nigel Erskine; aunt, Shanie Dyer; Diana Louard and Oswald Elliott of the CFBC; Lindsay Grant and all those who have supported her during her course of studies.
Erskine is currently job-hunting and has so far been unsuccessful in her quest. She informed this media house that she had sought assistance from the People Employment Programme but, there too, she was unsuccessful.
However, not daunted by such disappointments, Erskine declared that she intends to pursue her Master’s degree at the University of the West Indies, Trinidad Campus in the near future.
In her advice to young people, especially females, Erskine said: “Trials and tribulations must be faced head-on…they present themselves to test your resolve. Therefore, regardless of your financial stature, especially if you are from the poorer class in society, be focus, resilient and strive to gain as much education as you possibly can, because education can certainly eradicate poverty.
“Young women, for centuries females have been in the shadows. Today, we see many women have taken up careers that were once male dominated, and many of them are certainly performing better than their male counterparts. It is therefore from this perspective that I stress the importance of education and training. Additionally, I would like to advise that you to select your specific career while at high school, set your goals, remain focused and aim for the sky, so if you should fall short the clouds will be your cushion.”
After graduating from the CFBC on Tuesday, November 22, 2011, Erskine was informed mail and telephone that she was selected the 2011 National Scholar for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET).
On receipt of that information, an elated Erskine immediately informed not only her parents, relatives and friends residing in the Federation, but also her overseas-based maternal and paternal grandparents as well as her extended family.
Her jubilation was however short-lived, as one day before graduation she was informed by telephone that she was no longer the National Scholar (TVET).
She noted that the letter, dated November 16, 2011 and signed by the Registrar, Darlene Inniss, stated that she was the proud recipient of “The Nathaniel-John Hospitality Studies & Culinary Arts Award for Best Results” and was invited to attend the 24th Annual Cable & Wireless dba LIME/CIC Academic Excellence Awards ceremony held at the St. Kitts Marriott Resort on Friday (Nov. 18).
Erskine said prior to receipt of the letter, the Registrar, on Tuesday, November 14, 2011, had notified her by telephone of her success and invitation to the Awards Ceremony.
“I attended the ceremony in the company of my mother and father, and together we discussed plans for my future development now that I was offered a scholarship. I have set goals and, even before enrolling at the College, one of them was to further my studies in this discipline after graduation.
“I am not from a wealthy family, and I have been contemplating on accessing a loan from the Development Bank. However, I was jubilant on hearing that I was awarded a scholarship and will no longer have to worry about a student loan repayment plan in the future. But, this and other related plans have been torn to shreds when I learned one day before graduation that I was no longer the National Scholar,” Erskine said.
When contacted, the then CFBC’s President, Dr. Hermia Morton-Anthony, told SKNVibes that an error was made and it was only realised two days before the Graduation Ceremony.
“This year an initial error was made in identifying the TVET Scholar. A final review of the list of qualifying students for the academic honours categories revealed that the data set was incomplete. The review also revealed that a student, other than the graduate originally identified, was the TVET Scholar. The College moved speedily to correct the error which was realised only two days before the graduation ceremony was held.
“The information regarding the changes in the order of the TVET Scholar and Runner-up was communicated to the graduands affected. The College regrets the error which was caused by a combination of human error and technological failure and is reviewing its procedures to safeguard against similar errors in the future,” Dr. Morton-Anthony said.
The National TVET Scholarship is offered each year to the student who scores the highest Grade Point Average in the Division of Technical and Vocational Education and Management Studies at the Clarence Fitzroy Bryant College.
