Football dream fading
Second denial of US visa puts Munro graduate’s scholarship goal in jeopardy
THE DREAM of 20-year-old Munro College graduate Oral Thompson to pursue football internationally appears to be fading after his efforts to pick up a university scholarship in the United States were halted with his second denial of a student visa four months apart.
Thompson, who has been offered a partial scholarship to attend the University of Northwestern Ohio, has until the second week in March to settle and begin classes at the private institution in Lima, Ohio.
However, on Friday, that window narrowed considerably after the former Belmont Academy student who transferred to Munro three years ago was denied the F-1 visa to study in the North American country, where he would also pursue football.
The US Embassy in Kingston indicated to Thompson that he was found “ineligible” for the nonimmigrant visa.
It said that his application was denied under Section 214(b) of the US Immigration and Nationality Act because he was unable to demonstrate that his intended activities in the US would be consistent with the non-immigrant visa classification for which he applied.
LEFT IN SHOCK
But Thompson and his camp were left dumbstruck by the rejection, noting that they provided proof of his acceptance to the university, the partial scholarship as well as written affidavits of support and job letter from his father in Trinidad and three sponsors to cover his stay in the country.
Among his dossier was the I-20 form, a multipurpose document issued by a government-approved US educational institution certifying that a student has been admitted to a full-time programme of study and has also demonstrated sufficient financial resources to stay in the US.
The form is officially titled the certificate of eligibility.
Thompson’s expenses totalled US$27,000, with tuition costing US$4,700 per term. The partial scholarship is for US$3,000, a figure his team said would climb per semester.
“It’s really hard to cope after everything,” Thompson told The Gleaner on Friday, hours after his application was rejected.
The former centre-back, who represented Munro in the 2022-23 daCosta Cup season, said he was first denied the travel document last September days before he was to begin his information technology studies at the university.
“What else do I need to show that I have the financial support to pursue my dream. I really, really want a career in football. It means a lot to me. Honestly, I don’t know. I feel like giving up,” he repeatedly
said, his voice trailing warily.
A pain point for the Portmore United trainee is the lack of specificity to his case. He said he remains as confused as he was after the first denial.
“They just gave me the general green paper they give to everybody. I asked her what requirements I didn’t meet, and she told me to read through the paper. I told her I read through the last paper, and it wasn’t helpful, and she said that I should read through it thoroughly,” Thompson said.
Veteran head coach at Munro, Patrick‘ Jackie’ Walters, one of the island’s most successful schoolboy football coaches, said his first assessment of Thompson was that he possessed “tremendous potential”.
Walters said his former athlete has high ambitions to achieve in life, a trait he said he demonstrated while at Munro.
VERY DISAPPOINTED
Walters told The Gleaner that financial constraints prevented Thompson from attending university locally but said he was afforded the opportunity to further his education overseas because of his football ability.
“He was really looking forward to it. The environment which he grew up in it is normal for young boys to be sidetracked into foolishness. But he was very committed to what he wanted to achieve,” he said of the Westmoreland native.
“He found out that he could get an opportunity to go study abroad, and he was all excited about it, saying at least he could make himself into something. He has tremendous football potential. He is a very decent young man with good parental guidance. I was very disappointed when he told me that the embassy didn’t grant him the necessary visa to study,” said Walters.
Keith Murray, a former Munro old boy and one of Thompson’s sponsors, also struggled to comprehend the embassy’s decision.
Murray, too, was the recipient of a football scholarship that gave him the opportunity to study in the US.
Paying it forward, he pledged his support for Thompson.
“As far as I know he is a qualified student. It’s hard to believe that they would turn him down even after so many tries. I can speak first hand for what this would do for him because I was a scholarship awardee, ”Murray said.
“The experience is life-changing. It’s a really good opportunity for us Caribbean nationals and Jamaicans to be able to travel and get that university experience pursuing your dreams of playing football but also networking ... .The experience is invaluable. It’s a great opportunity, so not being given that opportunity can either make or break you,” he said.