The largest batch yet of Cayman Islands Civil Service College graduates proudly accepted diplomas and certificates on Thursday’s (29 October 2015) graduation.

A joint graduation with the University College of the Cayman Islands (UCCI) was held at the Sir Vassel Johnson Multipurpose Hall on the UCCI campus.

Twenty civil servants who had completed with associates’ degrees in public administration made up the fifth graduating class. Sixteen of these achieved honours, earning a final grade point average (GPA) of 3.5 or more.

The CSC’s class of 2015 had (asterisk denotes honours):

Roseanna Myrie* and Sharona Williams – Immigration;

Trevor Blake – CAYS Foundation;

Joy White* and Glenna Boase-Dyette* – Department of Children and Family Services;

Roy Charlton*, Carl Christian*, Gilbert Rankin* and Randy Rankin* – Fire Service;

Karen Christian* – Portfolio of the Civil Service;

Tristaca Ebanks – Ministry of Home Affairs;

Ronald Francis*, Lloyd Marriott*, Valentine Reid*, Fernando Soto* and Uriel Williams – Royal Cayman Islands Police Service (RCIPS);

Tracy Galvin* – Dept. of Environment;

Mahipal Persaud* – Environmental Health;

Renee Rankin* – Department of Commerce and Investment; and

Melanie Rivers* – General Registry.

In addition, seven students earned their Certificate in Public Administration:

Dwayne Bodden* – Postal Service;

Gerald Joseph* and Winsome Prendergast* – RCIPS;

Raquel Matute* – District Administration;

Jodene Scott* – Cayman Airways;

Ave Watler-McField – Health Services Authority; and

Martin Wilkinson* – Government Information Services.

“Three of our honours graduates have already begun their studies at the bachelor’s level,” CSC Head and Director of Human Capital Development Mrs. Andrea Fa’amoe said.

In the last five years, 38 graduates have earned the associate’s degree, of whom 26 or 68% have been Caymanians. Similarly, of the 23 who earned certificates in the same time, 20 or 87% are Caymanians, the Deputy Director added.

Lauding the efforts of this year’s graduates and certificate recipients, Deputy Governor Franz Manderson commented: “I am delighted that so many of our civil servants are making the effort to enhance their education. This is an important step towards excellence.”

Mr. Manderson went on to say: “My congratulations to each and every one of them and I trust their success encourages their colleagues to continue their education likewise. Our goal, of course, is to consistently improve the service we provide to the community.”

Chief Officer in the Portfolio of the Civil Service, Mrs. Gloria McField-Nixon added her praise. “We warmly welcome the enthusiasm, hard work and dedication displayed by our graduating class this year although it has meant time away from their loved ones. I trust more civil servants will take advantage of the opportunities available through the CSC to obtain further education, especially since these courses are tailor-made to suit the needs of the government service,” she said.

The CSC curriculum is delivered by UCCI through evening classes.

Photo Captions

1. CSC Associate degree graduates share a happy moment with Civil Service Portfolio Chief Officer, Mrs. Gloria McField-Nixon, JP. Front row, l-r: Roseanna Myrie, Renee Rankin, Melanie Rivers, Glenna Boase-Dyette and Pat White; middle row, l-r: Karen Christian, John Carl Christian, Randy Rankin, Glen Logan(a civil servant but not a CSC student), Chief Officer Gloria McField-Nixon, Gilbert Rankine, Ricardo (Roy) Charlton, Sherona Williams and Mahipal Persaud; back row, l-r: Ronald Francis, Trevor Blake, Fernando Soto, Lloyd Marriot, Uriel Williams and Valentine Reid. Missing CSC grads from picture are: Tristaca Ebanks and Tracy Galvin.
2. Certificate earners with Chief Officer Gloria McField-Nixon: L-r: Raquel Matute (Brac), Dwayne Bodden (Brac), CO Gloria McField-Nixon, Jodene Scott and Winsome Prendergast. Missing are: Martin Wilkinson, Ave Watler and Gerald Joseph.