WESTMORELAND, Jamaica — Global Humanity Network Incorporated (GHN) has expanded its ‘Beyond the Backpack’ initiative to reach 85 students across 20 schools in the parishes of St Elizabeth and Westmoreland, bringing total beneficiaries to 135 islandwide following the programme’s launch in Trelawny last December.

The latest distribution saw 60 students in Westmoreland and 25 in St Elizabeth receiving full sets of textbooks and essential learning materials, adding to the 50 students in Trelawny who were assisted when the initiative was first rolled out in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa.

President and CEO of GHN, Jamaican-born American Dr Laxley Stephenson, said the intervention was driven by responsibility rather than convenience, and was designed to fill critical gaps left after the hurricane destroyed or displaced school books and other essential items for many students.

“In December in Trelawny alone, we distributed textbooks, food supplies and hygiene kits valued at approximately $1 million to a number of young students, while also announcing the establishment of a three-year mentorship programme to support selected students,” Stephenson said.

According to a release from GHN, the organisation provided 100 per cent of the required textbooks to 85 students in Westmoreland and St Elizabeth, covering nine schools in Westmoreland and 12 in St Elizabeth, in addition to the 50 students already supported in Trelawny.

Principal of Little London Primary School in Westmoreland, Nerissa Stevens, expressed heartfelt gratitude for the timely intervention.

“We are overly grateful that they saw our needs. We had students who had no textbooks at all, and GHN filled that gap so our students are better able to be catered to in instruction in the classroom,” Stevens said.

She noted that nine students at her school were initially identified to receive textbooks, but the organisation went even further.

“He gave an additional 10 following the nine. He instructed us that we can go and get for 10 more students because of the population of our school. The recipients are from all over the school — from the infant department straight to Grade Six and from all streams as well,” she added.

Global Humanity Network Inc is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organisation focused on improving underserved communities worldwide by mobilising volunteers and resources for education, poverty reduction, infrastructure and community development.

Professor Stephenson also announced that GHN is transitioning from a charity-focused organisation to a capacity-building, development-driven nonprofit aimed at producing sustainable, measurable and long-term impact in underserved communities.

“While GHN will continue to meet urgent needs, every act of assistance will now serve as a gateway to mentorship, education, leadership development and self-sufficiency,” he said.

Under the new strategic framework, spanning 2026 to 2029, GHN will operate a structured pipeline beginning with Helping Hands — providing targeted, dignified support — progressing to Mentoring Matters, which focuses on guidance, accountability and life skills, and culminating in Beyond the Backpack, a multi-year investment in education and leadership development.

Implementation will take place in three phases: 2026 will establish student cohorts, mentoring systems, recurring donors and impact tracking; 2027 will expand participation, partnerships and public accountability; and 2028 to 2029 will scale the model across additional communities with multi-year funding and regional leadership development.

“The result will be improved student success, stronger youth leadership, reduced dependency on aid, and communities equipped to sustain their own growth. GHN is not ending charity — it is elevating it into a strategy for building futures,” Stephenson said.