JONATHAN Grant High School past student and current Senior Teacher Jadio Dennis is a trailblazing educator and ‘edupreneur’. He is the founder of J Ed Elite Services, a tutoring business founded in 2020 in the midst of the novel coronavirus pandemic.

As was the case with several other countries, the Jamaican education system was not spared from its ravages and thus resulted in the closure of schools at all levels. Consequently, Dennis seized the opportunity to venture in ‘edupreneurship’.

“Recognising the eminent gap created in our education system, I was led to start J Ed Elite Services, an online-based education company. With a team of eight educators at the time, we hosted a summer school programme. Parents from across Jamaica and Florida registered their kids for the programme for the academic assistance it offered,” he told Career & Education.

He added that parents were impressed by the summer programme and began requesting classes for the September school term. This resulted in the continuation of classes.

“We initially started at the lower secondary and CSEC levels. However, the demand grew steadily until we became a registered business, and now offer over 12 educational programmes, inclusive of, but not limited to academic coaching, behavioural modification, professional development, PEP, reading, lower secondary, CSEC and CAPE classes. We now offer over 15 lower secondary subjects, over 20 CSEC subjects, and over 30 CAPE units,” he detailed.

With just over two years in operation, the chief executive officer boasts that the business has assisted over 450 students across Jamaica and the United States of America, increased staff from eight to over 50 contractual educators, benefited from two educational consultants, and employed a full-time administrative assistant.

Dennis said his vision for the business is “to become an indispensable partner and contributor to our regional and international school communities”.

According to the company’s latest SWOT analysis, there are six major opportunities in the education system for growth. He outlines the plans going forward:

“We have plans in place to establish six sub-sectors in our company, inclusive of an in-person learning lab. We are now in the phase of growth and expansion and will be appointing directors designated and dedicated to the development of each sub-sector.”

Notwithstanding, there is a major limitations. “Our major challenge at the moment has to do with funding and finding a space in Spanish Town to provide our services to schools, teachers, parents, guardians and students at an affordable rate,” he highlighted.

The 26-year-old, who is the fifth of seventh children, grew up in Spanish Town, St Catherine, in a single-parent household headed by his mother, Ruby Gordon, who is now deceased. She was a caregiver primarily for children and the elderly.

Dennis did not consider himself rich or poor, but viewed his mother as a matriarch who was rich in love. He said that his mother also instilled honesty and contentment in him and his siblings from an early age. Therefore, not having certain luxuries did not faze him as a child.

Dennis was schooled at Ensom City Basic School and Eltham Park Primary School, before moving to Jonathan Grant High School, where his eldest sister Kerry-Ann also attended. His mother was happy for this outcome, as she thought it was a good school, and it would be economical, since it was one taxi away. She valued education and saw to it that Dennis and his siblings attended school every day.

Dennis, who teaches the sciences, passionately shared that his tenure as a student at Jonathan Grant High moulded him to be who he is today.

“I met some of the best teachers, who today still have a lasting impact on my life. I believe they looked out for me and continuously encouraged me. In fact, it was Miss Lisa Powell, a science educator, who stimulated my passion for the sciences.”

He also spoke of the impact of the mantra that Principal Dr O’Neil Ankle had the students recite during weekly devotions.

“In 2012 Dr Ankle took up the post of principal and in every devotion or gathering, we had to repeat the mantra, ‘I am created for excellence’. As a grade 11 student at the time, this significantly impacted my self-efficacy as I truly believed that I could accomplish anything I put my mind to, as I was created for excellence. To this day, students still repeat that mantra.”

Due to his challenging economic situation, he was nicknamed Olé because almost every day he purchased Olé and Viva — a carbonated drink. Although he admitted to liking Olé, it was mainly what he could afford at the time. It was satisfying until he returned home to consume something more substantial.

This situation did not faze the goal-getter, as he was contented with what he had and did his best. Though he did not consider himself the most brilliant pupil, his aim was to make his mother proud and work as hard as he could. These efforts resulted in him graduating with nine CSEC subjects. Thereafter, he went to José Marti Technical High to pursue sciences at the CAPE level.

From a tender age, Dennis knew he wanted to become an educator. He started teaching Sunday school and in high school his biology teacher would often call on him to explain topics to his peers. Though he believed these experiences were often nerve-racking, he conceded that the opportunities helped to build his confidence and concretised his decision to pursue teacher education.

He applied to different teachers’ colleges, and then accepted the offer to study at Shortwood Teachers’ College. He completed a bachelor of education in science education with honours.

His love for Jonathan Grant led him to request special permission to conduct his teaching practice in their science department while at Shortwood. After completing his teaching practicum, he was able to secure a teaching position in the science department in 2017. He has a deep passion for science education and leadership.

“It is my goal to contribute significantly to the education sector, particularly in the areas of leadership, TVET, science, and teacher development. I was strategic in my efforts to accomplish this; and so two years after I began teaching, I decided to pursue a masters’ in science education. The move towards the completion of a master’s degree also influenced by my dream of completing the highest level of qualification in our education system, so that others who experience similar upbringing would know and appreciate that anything is possible as long as they are willing to be dedicated and resilient,” he noted.

September 2019 was a bittersweet moment for Dennis; on the one hand, he was accepted to pursue a Master of Education Degree in Science Education at The University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona, and received a full scholarship from the education ministry. He was also promoted to grade supervisor at his workplace. On the other hand, he lost his mother during the same week.

Despite this monumental loss, Dennis remains motivated to build a legacy. He is very involved in various areas at work. He has hosted staff workshops, was co-opted on technology committee during the novel coronavirus pandemic to assist teachers regarding the use of technology, and managed the science and environmental club.

Dennis also has numerous accolades to his name, such as teacher of the year, form teacher of the year, three-time teacher of the term, and more recently, grade supervisor of the term.

Dennis believes he is called to leadership and there is more to accomplish. He does not believe in getting “comfortable with only two slices of the bread”. Consequently, he is now pursuing doctoral studies in leadership in TVET and workforce development at the UWI, Mona.

Outside of his full-time teaching job, he is also contracted by CXC as an assessor for the integrated science regional examinations, UWI, Mona’s Faculty of Science and Technology as an editor/reviewer of PEP integrated science textbooks, and the Ministry of Education and Youth as an editor/reviewer of human and social biology textbooks.

Dennis is grateful to his church family at Ensom City Gospel Chapel, who is very instrumental in much of who he is today. He also salutes his mentors, Michael Miller and Donna-Ree Maitland.