Over 150 persons drawn mainly from the hospitality sector, and to some extent from other places of employment, are now equipped to perform better in their various jobs. The necessary training was provided through the initiatives of the Anguilla Community College Development Unit.

The graduates in the January to May training programme

The trainees graduated from a series of courses at a Certificate Presentation Ceremony held at the Anguilla Great House on November 15. It followed the conclusion of the Short Term Interim Programme for 2007 which had as its theme “Challenged to Embrace Development.”

The January to May 2007 Professional Part-Time Courses were Hotel Reception and Sales conducted by Sharon Richardson; Accommodation Management, by Karl Woodley; Basic Housekeeping, by Aldeta Gumbs; Quality Customer Care by Candis Niles; Principles of Sanitation, Safety and First Aid, by Dana Ruan; and Supervisory Management, by Dr. Phyllis Fleming-Banks.

The graduates in the January to May training programme

In the Seminar Programme, the subject areas and the facilitators were as follows: Event Planning and Management and Supervisory Housekeeping, conducted separately by Stephne Goddard; Basic Food & Beverage Service Skills, by Terry Ann Marshall; Bartending Skills, by Roderick Prescod; Energy Conservation & Plant Maintenance by A. C. Small and Francis Lum Young; and Pathways to Lengendary Customer Care, by Dr. Ben Henry.

Project Director for the Community College Development Unit, Dawn Reid, said that just over a year the first phase of the Short Interim Programme had begun and was designed to address the urgent need for training in the hospitality sector. She described this and other efforts as “baby steps to the establishment of the National Community College, a phrase she borrowed from Permanent Secretary, Education, Rodney Rey.

Gifts for Ms. Bernice Critchlow Earle, Dr. Phyllis Fleming-Banks and Mr. Warren Buddle

She stated that significant progress had been made and Anguilla was now closer to the formal establishment of the National Community College and Hospitality Institute.

Mrs. Reid told her listeners that the Certificate Presentation Ceremony was to recognise a number of persons who had successfully completed phases two and three of the Short Term Interim Programme. “The response was remarkable and basically confirmed to us, at the Community College Development Unit and the Project Steering Committee, that what we were doing was right.”

Gifts for Ms. Bernice Critchlow Earle, Dr. Phyllis Fleming-Banks and Mr. Warren Buddle

Minister of Education, Evans Rogers, told the programme participants that their decision to enrol in the courses was an expression of their confidence in the local institution to meet their career and personal development needs. He said their perseverance to complete the training was also an indication of their belief that the foundation for their career advancement and personal development was education and training.

He noted that in the first year of operation the College Development Unit had seen the enrolment of 352 students drawn from the public and private sectors and that the programmes had been limited to hospitality trades and customer care.

Gifts for Ms. Bernice Critchlow Earle, Dr. Phyllis Fleming-Banks and Mr. Warren Buddle

“This level of demand is a clear indication of the need for training,” Minister Rogers said. “It is also good justification for the almost $800,000 spent by Government on this type of training. At the same time there is clear evidence that the provision of this type of training also has the potential to pay for itself. Our records show that almost one quarter of the expenses has been recovered. The establishment of a Community College will be cost-effective.”

Mr. Rogers was grateful to the Barbados Community College, Dr. Ben Henry and Hocking College for their assistance, the many hospitality establishments that have financed the training of their employees and the local tutors for their pioneering work in the area of tertiary education in Anguilla

Remarks on behalf of the Barbados Community College were delivered by Bernice Critchlow Earle who commended the Anguilla College Development Unit for its work. She was delighted that her institution was of continuing assistance in the effort to train Anguillians in the hospitality industry and looked forward to the 2008 training programme.

The feature address was delivered by Warren Buddle, a highly educated and successful past student at the Albena Lake-Hodge Comprehensive School. Mr. Buddle, who is now the Operations Manager at Temenos, spoke about the significant benefits of training and challenged the course participants to commit themselves to further training and to high performance at their various places of employment.

The next series of Professional Part-time Courses will be held from January 21 to May 8, 2008.

Governor George (right) and others

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