From The Jamaica Institute of Technology to CAST

SHORTLY AFTER the college opened in 1958, the Ministry of Education announced a change of name from Kingston Technical College to the Jamaica Institute of Technology. Principal Alistair Thompson resigned and returned to the United Kingdom. After his departure, F.W. Needham, an Englishman, became administrator for a year prior to the appointment of a new principal. The new principal was Hugh Falkner, an Englishman who had been principal of Croydon Technical College in England for some years. He served in that post until 1965.

A provisional board, chaired by Sydney Martin, was appointed by the Ministry of Education to guide the academic life of the institute. The name of the institution was changed to the College of Arts, Science and Technology (CAST) in 1959. Cecil Wint succeeded Falkner as principal in 1965. He was the first Jamaican-born principal of the institution. He remained in the post for four years and was instrumental in implementing a World Bank-sponsored buildingexpansion programme planned by the previous regime. Bernard Towlson, succeeded Cecil Wint as acting principal for one year.

Dr Alfred Sangster succeeded Towlson in 1962. Prior to Dr Sangster’s appointment as principal, he was a senior

lecturer in the Faculty of Natural Science at the University of the West Indies, Mona, where he had worked for 18 years.

After 37 years as a premier polytechnic college in the region, CAST was accorded university status on September 1, 1995, under the name University of Technology, Jamaica.

Successive presidents have been Dr the Hon Rae Davis, OJ, who served from August 1996 to December 2006, and Professor the Hon Errol Morrison, OJ, who led the university from March 2007 to February 2015. The fourth president, Prof Stephen Vasciannie, CD, took up office as president on January 1, 2017. Prior to that period, Ambassador the Honourable Burchell Whiteman, OJ, served as acting president during the period June 2014 to July 2015. Current deputy president, Prof Colin Gyles, acted as president during the period August 2015 to December 2017.

A view of the well-known Lillian’s Restaurant, which provides hands-on training for School of Hospitality and Tourism Management students in the areas of dining-room service management and a la carte preparation. The building was declared a national monument by the Jamaica National Heritage Trust in 2012.

The barn and silos.

Then Prime Minister P.J. Patterson unveils the University of Technology, Jamaica headstone in 1995. Looking on (from left) are Dr Blossom O’Meally-Nelson, then pro-chancellor; ambassador Burchell Whiteman, OJ, then minister of education; and Sir Alister McIntyre, then principal, University of the West Indies, Mona.