Thanksgiving service for eminent language educator Velma Pollard on Friday

Dr Velma Earle Pollard’s death was sudden. She passed away on February 1 at home in St Andrew, just weeks from her 88th birthday on March 26. Her service of thanksgiving will take place in The University Chapel, Mona on February 21 at 10 a.m.

Pollard was born in 1937 in Woodside, St Mary to a school teacher mother, and her father was a farmer. Woodside would turn out to be a major influence on her literary works and those of her sister, Dr Erna Brodber, world-renown novelist and educator herself. They both showed an interest in the arts, and Pollard won her first poetry prize when she was seven years old. But, it was not until 1975 that she became eager to have her work published.

She attended Excelsior High School in St Andrew, after which she moved to The University College of the West Indies, Mona campus where she studied language. She also earned a master’s degree in English, and education, from Columbia University in New York, and McGill University in Canada, respectively, and a PhD in language education from The University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona.

Professionally, Pollard returned to teach at The UWI from where she retired as senior lecturer in language education in the School of Education in the Faculty of Humanities and Education at The University of the West Indies, Mona. She also taught in the Department of Educational Studies in the Faculty of Arts and Education.

Her major research interests were in the Creole languages of the English-speaking Caribbean, the language of Caribbean literature and Caribbean women’s writing. Her articles in these areas were published in local and international journals. From Jamaican Creole to Standard English – A Handbook for Teachers (1994 and 2003), and a monograph, Dread Talk – The language of Rastafari (1994, 2000) are just two of her non-fiction publications.

These areas of scholarship were also sources of inspiration for her poetry, and she has also been strongly affected by her visits to the British Virgin Island, Virgin Gorda, and Caret Bay in St. Thomas US Virgin Islands.

“Pollard’s readings for the Poetry Archive demonstrate the diversity of her work, spanning themes such as family, religion, ethnicity and nature,” a blurb from the August 2003 Mona Academic Conference says.

Pollard’s creative writing publications include Crown Point and Other Poems (1988); Considering Woman (1989); Shame Trees Don’t Grow Here (1992); Karl (bilingual edition) (1992); Homestretch (1994); Karl and Other Stories (1994), The best philosophers I know can’t read or write (2001), Leaving Traces (2008), Karl (2008); Considering Woman (2010), And Caret Bay Again (2013). Her novella, Karl, won the Casa de las Americas Prize in 1992. Her creative publications are listed below:

Since 1988, Pollard’s works have been published in several media, and appeared in anthologies, such as, Jamaica Woman: An Anthology of Poems (edited by Pamela Mordecai and Mervyn Morris, 1980); Her True-True Name (edited by Pamela Mordecai and Betty Wilson), and Daughters of Africa (edited by Margaret Busby, 1992).

“Velma was one of those people who studied things that many people thought had little value. By so doing, she left us with important scholarship on the value of the Jamaican language in education, and the language of Rastafari. Her passing will leave a huge gap in the lives of many, but the impact of her work in education and linguistics will be felt for generations. My deepest condolences to her family and friends,” a Facebook post by Dr Joseph Farquharson, senior lecturer in the Faculty of Humanities and Education, and coordinator of the Jamaican Language Unit at The UWI, Mona, and a member of the executive committee of the Society for Caribbean Linguistics, says.

Dr Caroline Dyche, lecturer in the Department of Language, Linguistics and Philosophy at The UWI, told The Gleaner that, “Velma was known for the richness of her literary work – several poetry anthologies, short stories, the novel, Karl, and, in the realm of non-fiction, her landmark language education monograph, From Jamaican Creole to Standard Jamaican English.

“She was also known for her collegiality and kindness to young academics. Always willing to lend a helping hand to individuals and groups making their way in academia, she gave of herself in public and private discussions around all things educational and was renowned for her wisdom and frankness of opinion.”

After her retirement, Pollard continued to have a presence at The UWI. In August 2022, she was elected an honorary member of the Society for Caribbean Linguistics, which she served with distinction as an executive officer and financial officer. She is survived by three children, five grandchildren, great-grandchildren, sister Erna Brodber, nieces, nephews, and other relatives.

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