Three St Thomas women awarded Chevening scholarships – Part 1

St Thomas has made its stamp on the selection of this year’s Chevening Scholarship, as three parish members are among the cohort of intellectuals who will be studying in the United Kingdom come September.

They are 24-year-old Georgette Graham, 29-year-old Sheneka Royal and Tishauna Mullings.

Speaking with The Gleaner, the three gave some insight on the events that stimulated their application.

Graham, who is a past student of Morant Bay High School, explained that she has been the recipient of various scholarships, opportunities which encouraged networking and volunteerism.

“To me, Chevening fits right in with what I’m accustomed to as Cheveners are expected to network and give back to the community. I discovered Chevening when I was doing my bachelor’s. However, after reading about it, I realised I wasn’t decided on an area of focus,” Graham said, adding that she did not meet all the requirements at the time so she gave herself few years to prepare.

Now a practising attorney-at-law with Levy Cheeks, the young academic admitted that she felt relieved walking out of the interview, as for her, the session was brief and the environment relaxed.

Reminiscing on the day she found out she was accepted, Graham said she was at work when the email notification came in.

She shared, “I casually opened it without even thinking it would be Chevening. I read the first line and leggo a one scream that had my co-workers rushing to my office. A tear or two or three rolled down my cheeks and they thought something bad had happened. In my usual dramatic self, I let them know what’s up and they went wild!

“A part of me still couldn’t believe, so after a few minutes, when the excitement quieted, I returned to the email and read the first sentence again.”

Royal’s experience was quite similar.

“I read the first line which said, ‘we are delighted,’ closed the email and cried. I cried because I was happy, grateful, and excited. This scholarship will change my life. It will give me an opportunity to create opportunities, not only for myself, but for many others like me,” she said.

Sheneka’s Vision

Hailing from the community of Stoke’s Hall, the public health inspector and food specialist with the Ministry of Health told The Gleaner that walking out of the interview room, she felt confident that the panel was able to understand her vision for food safety in Jamaica and the need for persons to be educated in such regard.

Interestingly, Royal explained that her inspiration to subscribe to this opportunity was rooted in the obligations of the scholarship.

She said, “A requirement of the Chevening Scholarship is that you have to return to your country and contribute to its development, and that is precisely why I applied. I want to contribute to Jamaica’s development through food safety by making Jamaica the hub for regional food safety training; aiding in food production and exportation, thereby contributing to its economic development.”

A past student of St Thomas Technical School, she hopes to inspire others from her alma mater of the endless possibilities that are available to them, regardless of where they are from.

The third St Thomas scholar who will be journeying to the United Kingdom to further her education told The Gleaner that she felt inspired to deepen her knowledge to make a broader impact on the lives of others.

Mullings, who is from Seaforth and known for her youth activism in St Thomas, said, “Over the years, living in a rural village where opportunities seemed scarce, I felt compelled to learn the art of leadership. The aim was to become an activist for rural development and create avenues for empowerment through financial empowerment, agricultural development and education through entrepreneurship. My quest to become an influential leader in rural development was an evolution from living in childhood depression to discovering my life purpose. This unfolded through a feverish search for tools and strategies for personal development, which was intensified by my will to positively enable others from rural villages with minimum resources to do the same. Chevening is the perfect opportunity to develop those skills in a global space.”

Like Graham and Royal, Mullings admitted she felt a sense of surety coming out of the interview.

Likewise, she was overwhelmed with joy when she was confirmed a Chevening Scholar.

“It was a winning season for me, my business and those close to me. I was just returning from the 30 under 30 Change Makers Awards in Washington, had just gotten a large business contract, among many other wins. I literally cried and thanked God.”

 

Part 2 of the article will reveal the scholars’ individual goals and fields of study.