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Bolt Foundation assists seven Trelawny schools

Published:Wednesday | January 29, 2020 | 12:27 AM
Students from the Granville Primary in Trelawny display the famous Usain Bolt ‘To The World’ pose with the great sprinter looking on in the background. Seven schools in Trelawny, including Granville, have benefited from a donation of computer equipment through the Usain Bolt Foundation.
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Students from the Granville Primary in Trelawny display the famous Usain Bolt ‘To The World’ pose with the great sprinter looking on in the background. Seven schools in Trelawny, including Granville, have benefited from a donation of computer equipment through the Usain Bolt Foundation.

Seven schools in the parish of Trelawny have benefited from the donation of computer equipment through the Usain Bolt Foundation (UBF). The foundation, which focuses on children at the basic and primary levels, has been joined by Microsoft UK in the latest effort.

The schools that have received benefits through this joint UBF/Microsoft UK initiative, valued at over 12,000 pounds are Albert Town Primary, Spring Garden Primary, Duanvale Primary, Waldensia Primary, Bellevue Primary, Falmouth All-Age and the Granville Primary and Infant School.

Additionally, the Granville Primary School has received a significant upgrade in its ­surroundings through the foundation. The school ground, which was unpaved and served as a playing area, was a constant nuisance to the children with plumes of dust and mud impacting their daily lives. The foundation undertook the refurbishing work in an effort to improve the experience of the children. The work was completed at a cost of over $2.5 million.

In handing over the computer equipment and the refurbished grounds yesterday, Bolt said that these initiatives through the foundation are important and help to fulfil his commitment in ensuring that the children of Jamaica benefit from his hard work. He said the foundation continues to impact children across the country and that its caring hands will continue to ignite hope and assist, where possible.

Chairman of the UBF, Winsome Wilkins, said that over the past year, the organisation had assisted several institutions that care for children. These include the Mustard Seed Home, the Westhaven Children’s Home, Special Olympics Jamaica and the Shortwood Practising School.

Meanwhile, long-time sponsor of Usain Bolt, Digicel Limited, has joined the foundation on its mission to improving Internet access to the schools. Digicel will be facilitating the schools in using the computer equipment to access the Internet.

Head of public relations at Digicel, Elon Parkinson, says that “this partnership with the Usain Bolt Foundation ensures that students in rural Jamaica enjoy the same level of access to Internet-based education like others in urban areas and more developed countries. It opens up a world of knowledge and research, ­especially in the area of STEM learning, which has become a national emphasis.”