Organisation of American States (OAS) scholarships up for grabs Education officer urges JAMAICANS to make use of opportunity....between 2007 and 2014, more than 185 Jamaicans have benefited from OAS scholarships.

BY KIMBERLEY HIBBERT Observer staff reporter hibbertk@jamaicaobserver.com  Tuesday, November 11, 2014    

FOREIGN language education officer in the Ministry of Education, Martha Corbett Baugh has issued a call for more Jamaicans to take advantage of the Organisation of American States (OAS) scholarships that are up for grabs each year.

Martha Corbett Baugh (second right), foreign language
education officer in the Ministry of Education, addressing
yesterday’s Jamaica Observer Monday Exchange.
Also photographed are (from left) Iris Soutar, executive
director, Jamaica Association for the Deaf; Jeanelle van
GlaanenWeygel, representative, Organisation of A
merican States, Office of the General Secretariat in
Jamaica; Michael Tucker, executive director, National
 Council on Drug Abuse Secretariat; and Violet Crutchley,
 craft development specialist at the Tourism Product
 Development Company. (PHOTO: NAPHTALI JUNIOR) 

Addressing editors and reporters at the weekly Jamaica Observer Monday Exchange yesterday, Corbett Baugh said that, while the scholarships are available each year, the information regarding accessibility is not properly circulated.

"There is lack of proper circulation of information. The scholarships are advertised through the Ministry of Finance and the OAS puts an advertisement in the newspapers, which gives you links and invites candidates to do proper follow-up," said Corbett Baugh, who has benefited from the programme.

According to Jeanelle van GlaanenWeygel, OAS representative at the Office of the General Secretariat in Jamaica, an agreement between the University of the West Indies and the OAS has been in place since 2007 that allows Caribbean students to access scholarships.

"Over 150 OAS scholarship recipients pursued academic studies at UWI since 2007 (when the OAS-UWI co-operation agreement was signed). During that time, UWI offered over US$1 million in tuition waivers to OAS scholarship recipients," she said.

Van GlaanenWeygel later added that, between 2007 and 2014, more than 185 Jamaicans have benefited from OAS scholarships.

But Corbett Baugh said there is a great disadvantage for Jamaican citizens, because not everyone reads the newspapers, nor has the patience to follow through with the instructions for applying for the scholarships.

Moreover, Corbett Baugh explained that, while the instructions and application processes are lengthy, help is available at the OAS office to complete the paperwork and make the deadlines. more