E ighty-six students entering high schools and a range of tertiary institutions across the island have received their share of over $2 million from EduCom Co-operative Credit Union towards their schooling for the 2019/2020 academic year.

The scholarships, which were presented on Wednesday, August 14 at Knutsford Court Hotel in Kingston, will allow students to pursue studies at The University of the West Indies, the University of Technology, Jamaica, various community and teachers’ colleges, and at a number of highschools.

National mathematics co-ordinator in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Dr Tamika Benjamin who addressed the function, encouraged the awardees to surround themselves with like-minded friends who can propel them to excel even further as they continue on their academic journey.

EduCom’s Chief Executive Officer Elvis King encouraged the recipients to always seek to learn and gain knowledge.

“People with more knowledge always lead those with less. Aim to be at the top of your class. The more time spent on something, the more knowledgeable you become; focus on those things that really count. So, your Xboxes are good but spend more time in your books, as this is going to later give you the power to lead those that spent less in them,” he advised.

Speaking after the ceremony, EduCom’s top girl for 2019 in the PEP category, Fana Campbell, who also received an additional cash award said she was elated to have received the bursary which will assist her mom greatly in purchasing school supplies.

“I had to make a lot of sacrifices in preparing for my exams, as I was also quiz captain and a member of the track and netball teams. I am just elated that all my hard work paid off. This will encourage me to continue working hard,” she said.

The EduCom Scholarship Awards Programme selects individuals from its membership who have maintained a minimum ‘A’ average in their recent examinations along with demonstrating verifiable financial need.

Of the 86 scholarships granted for the new academic year, 70 of the recipients were PEP awardees. At the tertiary level, the EduCom Scholarships will allow 16 students to pursue degree courses.

EduCom Co-operative Credit Union was established just over four years ago from the merger of AAMM Co-operative Credit Union, UWI (Mona and Community)Co-operative Credit Union, and St Catherine credit unions, making it the fifth largest in Jamaica with 72,000 members and nine branches islandwide.