NCU bulletin - TACSU equips participants

From his beginning, man has been in a constant state of change. While some fear change, others embrace it. These people see their challenges as mere stepping stones; they know opportunities will allow for personal growth.

Too often, the accomplishments of those who embrace change are not met with celebration or encou-ragement. Recently, the University awarded 17 participants for the successful completion of short courses in conversational French and public speaking. The short courses were offered by NCU's Training and Consultancy Services Unit (TACSU), a non-academic department that provides training and consultancy services for individuals, organisations and companies as well as university faculty and staff.

One participant, who conquered her fear of public speaking, said: "This course has helped me to be more confident in my job. I was able to use the skills I learnt in the first session the very next day at work. Individuals have started to ask me where I received my training."

Geraldine Pinnock, director of TACSU shares the observation that, "there are many individuals who, while not wishing to pursue an academic degree, want to enhance their personal development and workplace skills. Some individuals have reached a stage at which they want to do courses simply for personal satisfaction". She says TACSU recognises that the professional development of the workforce at all levels is necessary for individuals and businesses to adapt to the rapidly and constantly changing market environment. "Updating skills and learning new techniques allow the workforce to acquire the competencies necessary to work effectively, efficiently and creatively in various fields of business," said Pinnock.

TACSU was established to deliver relevant, tailor-made training, assessment and support with programmes designed to help individuals achieve personal and corporate goals. Short courses, workshops and seminars are offered in various disciplines.

UCC Foundation - The UCC provides a number of scholarships, some through the UCC Foundation. These are open to students in any field of study offered by the UCC's local programmes only. The receipt of any award is subject to the availability of funds.

Application forms - All interested students must have received an acceptance letter from the UCC Registrar Office before an application for scholarship can be submitted. Scholarship applications should be submitted at 6 Belmont Road, Kingston 5.

Application forms are available at 6 Belmont Road or 17 Worthington Avenue, Kingston 5, or any UCC outreach centre. Continuing UCC students wishing to be considered for the scholarships listed in this section must have a copy of their most recent transcript to accompany the application form. Applicants must disclose current income sources.

Deadlines and notification - For all types of financial assistance, priority consideration will be given to applicants whose application has been received and who have been admitted to UCC by June 30. Late applications will be accepted and considered for the second round of awards offered in January of each year. Scholarships offered in January are limited, so every attempt should be made to submit applications in a timely manner.

Applicants and parents of applicants are encouraged to estimate their previous year income data, if necessary. Applicants who file on time will be notified of award prior to the beginning of Fall registration. Applications filed after June 30 will automatically be assigned for consideration of January awards. These will not be retroactive to September.

b>The University College of the Caribbean (UCC) congratulates its scholarship awardees for 2010

Minister of Education, Andrew Holness, will be guest speaker at the opening ceremony of the annual Research Day activities at The University of the West Indies, Mona, which takes place on Thursday, January 28, at 9 a.m. The two-day exhibition takes place January 28-29, under the theme 'Education for a better nation, a stronger region'.

Research Day will feature over 100 exhibits mounted in the Assembly Hall and in Tent City, on the lawns adjacent the Senate building. Tours will be conducted throughout the faculties of Humanities and Education, Medical Sciences, Pure and Applied Sciences and Social Sciences which will be hosting Open Days. In addition, cultural and heritage tours of the campus will take place to introduce persons to its rich and varied past.

There will be a number of public lectures and seminars taking place over the two days at the Undercroft of the Senate building. On Thursday, January 28, at 11:00 a.m., there will the be seminar: 'Dealing with violence and aggression in select schools'. At 2 p.m. the TVET forum, 'New Directions in TVET at the UWI', will take place and then at 5:30 p.m. the annual AFJ/Sue Cobb lecture titled, 'Understanding the Development of Criminal Behaviour in Children: Prescription and Solution' will be delivered by Dr Claudette Crawford-Brown, lecturer, Department of Psychology, Sociology and Social Work.

On Friday, February 29, the first lecture in the Mona Law Series entitled 'Gender Equality, Sociology and Corporate Governance' will be delivered at 10.00 a.m. by Dr Kola Abimbola, lecturer in Company and Commercial Law, University of Leicester.

At noon, the Mona campus will host a Research Forum for all high school and college principals.

Research Day is designed to showcase the groundbreaking research conducted by members of the academic community at Mona and allow members of the public to interact with many of the award-winning individuals whose work will be on display. The public is invited to attend all these events.