GOVERNOR General Sir Patrick Allen on Wednesday urged young people to take advantage of the low tuition fees at community colleges, which offer accredited certificates, diplomas, associate degrees and even bachelor programmes.

At the same time, Sir Patrick, who was the keynote speaker at the Council of Community Colleges of Jamaica’s annual conference at the Hilton Rose Hall Hotel in St James, called on the colleges to keep apace with advancing technology and labour market demands, while intensifying recrutiment efforts.

“Let me assert that the contribution of community colleges has been and will continue to be a major factor in the reduction of poverty and in addressing a range of social ills which accrue from the dehumanising experience of unemployment…Education is a priceless gift. There is an old American proverb which says that: “Education is a gift that none can take away”. Through education, many persons have been propelled from poverty and obscurity to fame and influence,” the governor general said.

Arguing that, “For every country recording impressive economic performance, education has been a major contributor to its success,” Sir Patrick said it is therefore imperative that education be of high quality, relevant, applicable, affordable, and accessible to all.

“To be productive and equipped to take advantage of opportunities available globally, countries such as ours must keep up with the times in areas such as information technology. We cannot be in kindergarten when our competitors are producing at mastery level,” the governor general said.

He said that consistent with the Jamaican situation, research done by the Georgetown Centre on Education and the Workforce shows that, by 2020, 65 per cent of all American jobs will require some form of post-secondary degree or credential, but at the current rate at which universities are awarding them will fall short by roughly five million.

“This is why we see businesses and policymakers are increasingly turning to community colleges to help fill these workforce gaps,” the governor general informed.

“Therefore, I encourage you to intensify your recruitment efforts by finding innovative ways to promote the dynamic academic, vocational and entrepreneurial offerings of community colleges,” he told the conference.

— JIS