Jose Marti High alumni helping students to excel

Tamera Jarrett and her sister, Tia, are on a path to becoming lawyers, thanks to the invaluable support of the José Martí Alumni Association New York Inc (JMAANY) for enabling them.

The twins, who are studying law at the University of Technology (UTech), benefited from scholarships while attending the St Catherine-based José Martí High School, which covered their tuition, books and exams, enabling them to focus on their studies.

“The JMAANY programme has done something very special for me and my twin sister. We did not have to worry about financing, which eased the pressure off our parents and we just did what we had to do,” Tamera said.

In 2023, Tamera was named the José Martí High Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) Student of the Year and Female Sport Girl of the Year. She was the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) Student of the Year for 2022.

The law student, who captained the school’s netball team, said that she received awards in academics and sports, at almost every ceremony held at the institution while she was a student.

“They boosted my confidence. They were like my motivation, and even this one (CSEC) was not expected, but it helped to motivate me, because school can be very rough,” she noted.

GRATEFUL FOR THE SUPPORT

Tamera added that she is grateful for the support from JMAANY, and she is determined to give back to José Martí High to help other students like herself who face financial challenges to reach their full potential.

“I am not going to leave the school, I want to do the same thing that the programme did for me,” she said.

Her advice to other students is to “never stop until you are where you need to be. Keep pushing until your goals are achieved”.

With a vision that ‘Every student must be successful’, the JMAANY, founded in 2015, targets students who face financial challenges and need support to move forward in their studies.

This year the group’s support to students surpassed $4 million, which included scholarships, a breakfast programme, and mentorship.

The scholarships cover expenses such as school and exam fees, school supplies, transportation and other costs that are necessary for the students to have a successful learning experience.

“The impact of this programme has been ensuring that students stay in school and attain academic success. There are students who get lunch money every day, so it does have a tremendous impact on [them],” coordinator of the programme, Kesha Ford-Walker, said.

She informed that 53 students are receiving various levels of support and guidance under the programme.

She has high praises for vice president, Sharon Smith, who works tirelessly to raise funds and place students with mentors, who motivate them and help them to grow and succeed.

Vetting of beneficiaries is done by the school’s guidance department, and students are encouraged to be involved in the life of the institution, be a member of at least one club, maintain an overall average of at least 60 per cent and attend 85 per cent of classes.

All students are guaranteed full payment of their school fees, examination fees, breakfast and other support, depending on their situation.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, JMAANY provided scores of students with laptops and tablets and now operates a laptop and tablet loan programme for needy students.

The group has embarked on a project to refurbish the media centre/library at the school, which is being undertaken in phases.

Work done, so far, includes the painting of the space, purchase of air-conditioning units, provision of 20 laptops and Microsoft tools, and building of a circulation desk for the librarian.

Phase three of the programme is under way to acquire 25 desktop computers for the facility.