The burden of hefty tuition costs has been lifted from of 43 tertiary-enrolled students, who were formally announced as the 2017 Carreras scholarship and bursary beneficiaries at an awards ceremony hosted in their honour last Tuesday evening at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel.

Whittled down from more than 400 submissions, the fortunate 43 students who have their sights set on becoming future medical practitioners, educators and cultural ambassadors, among other professional disciplines, were collectively awarded financial assistance that totalled $8.1 million.

Extending congratulations to the awardees, Carreras Managing Director Marcus Steele advised them that the company “chose to take a chance on you because we are confident that investing in your future, in partnership with your parents and teachers, will assist you in achieving your full potential”.

A candid Steele shared that he was a product of humble beginnings and grew up in the troubled inner city of Payne Land, fleeing with his family at the height of political unrest in the 1980s when violence become not only pervasive but worrisome, too. Positing that one’s origins did not dictate one’s destination, Steele said: “we know you have big dreams backed by big achievements but, unfortunately, lack big pockets. That’s where Carreras comes in and we are more than happy to help.”

Meanwhile, the ceremony’s keynote speaker, Minister of State in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information Floyd Green challenged the room of scholarship and bursary recipients to “have dreams of not only transforming the country but the world”.

Green said his administration championed higher education and as such, had actively sought to reduce loan interest rates at the Students’ Loan Bureau, lessening borrowing rates from 9.5 to 6 per cent while encouraging tertiary pursuits in the burgeoning careers of logistics, engineering, information communication technology and maritime, which all hold significant career growth promise for the next generation of grads.

— Omar Tomlinson