St. Vincent and the Grenadines Community College
The University of the Virgin Islands said Saturday that its Board of Trustees during the regular session of its quarterly meeting on March 6, via Zoom, unanimously ratified actions taken during the regular session of the Feb. 10 Executive Committee to approve UVI’s Fiscal Year 2022 appropriations request of $41.7 million for operating expenses, debt service, mandated and miscellaneous programs.
According to the release, the board also unanimously approved a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the University of the Virgin Islands and the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Community College (SVGCC). As part of the agreement, UVI will offer St. Vincent and the Grenadines’ students pursuing undergraduate and graduate degrees at UVI a tuition rate of 1.75 times tuition rates established for residents of the U.S. Virgin Islands.
“We have always tried to be open to receiving students from the broader Caribbean. That has been a part of the history at UVI,” said UVI President Dr. David Hall. “However, a few years ago we were made aware that the out-of-territory cost of tuition stands in the way of some students coming here because our out-of-territory tuition costs are three times that of in-territory students.”
According to the release, Dr. Hall said that the university embarked on a project a few years ago to make it easier for students to come to UVI by reducing the out-of-territory tuition.
As part of the agreement, SVGCC will make classroom and office space available in the event of a UVI physical presence in St. Vincent and the Grenadines for purposes of offering applicable cohort-driven hybrid undergraduate and graduate degree programs, for those persons who for various reasons are unable to attend classes in the territory or St. Maarten campuses. Students pursuing a graduate degree will be admitted to the specified graduate degree program at UVI, according to the release.
The MOU is for a period of 10 years from the date of signing. A mid-term review shall be conducted after five years to determine what adjustments may be required.
At Saturday’s board meeting, UVI Board Chairman Henry Smock welcomed Trustee Kyza Callwood as the newest member of the Board. Callwood serves as the chair of the VI Board of Education.
As is customary, UVI President Dr. David Hall highlighted the excellence and commitment of those UVI employees or units that have performed exceptionally with the President’s Appreciation Award. This quarter’s award was presented to Dr. Frank Mills, director of the Eastern Caribbean Center at the University of the Virgin Islands and St. Thomas-St. John Census manager, who administered the 2020census, which was managed by the university.
As a result of the efforts of hundreds of Virgin Islands field and office census workers who completed questionnaires, that went door-to-door on St. Croix, St. John, St. Thomas, and Water Island, and engaged in telephone interviews, Census 2020 was completed.
“One may say, what is the big deal, we have been doing it for 40 years,” Dr. Hall said. “Well, the big deal is that the group of individuals who had to conduct this census, did so during a pandemic, which would change the way they would normally go about collecting this data, he said. “In order to finish this project, it meant that these individuals had to make a sacrifice and put their health at risk and go out into the community and collect data. It also meant that the public was also very leery about individuals coming to their homes to collect data.”
“However, through some creative work with the census advisors and our core team of leaders, we were able to complete it and complete it successfully,” said Dr. Hall.
Dr. Mills, who is housed on the Orville E. Kean Campus, was ably supported by his Albert A. Sheen Campus associate, Lorna Williams-Sutton, the St. Croix census manager. Both Dr. Mills and Williams-Sutton were supported by the following individuals, who Dr. Hall also recognized for the award:
St. Thomas/St. John:
- Dr. Frank Mills - St. Thomas-St. John census manager
- Arlene Auguste - assistant manager, Administration
- Stacey Chados – acting controller
- Sharlene Harris - vice president of Information Services & Institutional
Assessment
- Patrice Johnson - partnership specialist
- Tessa Liburd - human resources specialist
- Marissa Johnson-Rogers - assistant manager, Office Operations
- Erik Pattison - director of Network Operations
- Conrad Stancliffe -security officer
- Nadine Williams - programmer analyst
St. Croix:
- Lorna Williams-Sutton – St. Croix census manager
- Shelly Anslyn-Jones - human resources specialist
- Cecil Coker - assistant manager, Field Operations
- Sally George - assistant manager, Office Operations
- Carolyn Keys - geography specialist
- Leoneal Furet - director of Accounting and Operations
While in Executive Session, the Board:
- Approved Executive Session minutes of Oct. 24, 2020
- Received an update report on the Medical School Project and approved a resolution authorizing the president to commence with the reapplication for the Liaison Committee for Medical Education (LCME) for preliminary accreditation of a medical school at the University of the Virgin Islands
- Received an update on risk assessment and approved the report submitted by the Planning Committee
- Received an update on legal matters as well a report on personnel matters
The next scheduled meeting of the Board of Trustees will be held on Saturday, June 19, 2021.
