After completing two years of rigorous postgraduate studies at Lesley University in the USA, 13 local school welfare officers, guidance counsellors and social workers graduated on Saturday with Master of Arts Degrees in Counselling and Psychology, Expressive Therapies and Mindfulness Studies.
The graduates are Oslyn Crawford, Juanita Cameron, Anand Sharma, Latoya Hillman, Pricilla Gonsalves, Vickchand Ramphal, Sewpaul Persaud, Stephen Bactawar, Onika Pearson, Sharon Dyall, Kaycina Jardine, Haimraj Hamandeo, and Azharuddin Zahaur, the Education ministry said in a press release. They are from the Education, Labour, Human Services and Social Security ministries respectively.
The students expressed gratitude to the government and United Nations Children’s Fund for affording them the opportunity to study at the Cambridge, Massachusetts university. They also pledged to use their newly acquired knowledge to do their jobs more effectively and make a more meaningful impact on children’s lives.
Sharon Dyall, a Senior Guidance and Counselling Officer in the Education Ministry in Region Three, said she plans to use her newly acquired knowledge to increase her “efficiency and effectiveness in trauma sensitive assessment, intervention and counselling techniques to address issues such as depression, domestic violence, suicide,