‘One of the biggest things that has happened to me’
Marcia Erskine scholarship winner elated and honoured at COJO ceremony
WHEN RAYON Davis was, on Wednesday, announced as the recipient of the inaugural Marcia Erskine Scholarship, valued at US$5,000, he was dumbstruck.
Davis, a former ward of the State, did not know the measure of the recently deceased media and public relations practitioner and former journalist in whose honour the scholarship was created mere weeks ago, but he was elated that it will cover some of his tuition costs, and he will not have to immediately resort to getting a job while attending the University of Technology (UTech).
“I can just focus on studying!” the relieved young man, who is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Arts and Technology at UTech, told The Gleaner immediately after t he announcement during the Children of Jamaica Outreach, Inc (COJO) annual Scholarship Luncheon, which was held at The Jamaica Pegasus hotel in New Kingston.
“It’s a very proud feeling. This is one of the biggest things that has happened to me, and I’m so honoured,” he added.
Davis grew up at the City of Refuge children’s home, starting when he was six years old. At 18, he moved on to the Transitional Living Programme and started attending UTech.
While speaking with The Gleaner, he said he has a love for music, and when searching for a bachelor’s to pursue, he had in mind a career as a musician. However, after the COVID-19 pandemic took a toll on the country and opened his eyes and understanding, he realised that any programme he would be pursuing should be greater than just something related to music.
“The COVID came in and musicians and DJs, it really took a toll on them. There was no work, so I was thinking, ‘What can I do more that if something like this came into play, it won’t affect my job or my work?’ and I was thinking, and I said, ‘I want to do media’,” Davis recalled.
He said he then went on a search for media programmes being offered at the various universities across the island but chose to attend UTech because it was the institution that first gave him an acceptance letter.
“I applied for the degree, and I’m here working hard to achieve it,” the scholar said.
Davis hopes to become part of the creative department in a media house or agency after he completes his bachelor’s.
“I want to [also] have my own business. I’m taking business courses, too. I love advertising. I’m an entertainer myself, and I just love the whole media thing. I just have a love for that,” he told The Gleaner.
NO TUITION WORRY
Davis was elated to learn that he embodies numerous traits associated with Erskine, who owned her own public relations agency called Marcia Erskine & Associates, and had an entrepreneurial mindset and knack for media, communication, and creativity.
He said the US$5,000 from the Marcia Erskine Scholarship would assist greatly in the progression of his life.
“I can use this and pay for my tuition and don’t have to worry how I’m going to get money for fees,” he said.
For the first year of his tertiary-level studies, which he has just completed, he credits the Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA) for assisting him in covering the cost.
“They [CPFSA] helped me, but I have to help too. There are little things that I have to do, such as material, etc. CPFSA, they can do so much [and no more],” he said.
Erskine was instrumental in the success of COJO over the past 30 years as the organisation was one she offered her full suite of publicrelations services, primarily because of its goal, which is to offer scholarships to wards of the State. She also assisted over the years in securing various guest speakers, including government officials, for the annual awards ceremony.
At a thanksgiving service, during which Erskine’s life was celebrated on April 13 at the University Chapel, Mona, her daughter, Roshal Marshall, announced that the family would be endowing a $15-million Marcia Erskine Scholarship Fund that “will help create and educate the next wave of women journalists at The University of the West Indies”.
The scholarship, she said at the end of an emotional tribute to her mother, will“honour her legacy of love, community, and mentorship”.
AMID DEBATE around concerns that today’s students will use artificial intelligence (AI) to do their homework and present essays as their own, Senator Dr Dana Morris Dixon, minister without portfolio in the Office of the Prime Minister with responsibility for digital and skills transformation, believes, in one sense, that “it’s not a bad thing”.
“Last week, a radio station called me and said they wanted to do an interview on Meta AI. What was happening with WhatsApp and IG (Instagram), and their question was, ‘Isn’t this bad because the students are using this to do their homework?’ and I said, ‘No, it’s actually not a bad thing’,” Morris Dixon said on Wednesday as she addressed the annual Children of Jamaica Outreach Inc’s (COJO) Scholarship Luncheon, held at The Jamaica Pegasus hotel in New Kingston.
“We want our children to have access to technology and to be able to use all of this technology, and having it in WhatsApp (through Meta AI) is actually fabulous, but we have to obviously teach our children how to use it,” she said.
Meta AI was made available on WhatsApp in April during the recent software update which allows users to interact with a chatbot similar to ChatGPT.
“Your phone, I don’t know how many of you’ve looked at it, but on WhatsApp, you see Meta there now. In the past, you would have to download ChatGPT, but now it’s right there. AI is right there for you to use… . Embrace all this technology,” she said.
CAREER OPPORTUNITIES
Additionally, with scores of persons worried that their roles will soon become redundant due to AI now being readily available at smartphone users’ fingertips, Morris Dixon, who was appointed to her newly created portfolio by Prime Minister Andrew Holness, encouraged those individuals to explore opportunities that facilitate a career change or upgrade.
“As we look ahead, it is evident that the jobs of tomorrow will be different from those of today. According to the World Economic Forum, 85 million jobs may be displaced by a shift in the division of labour between humans and machines by 2025. That’s in another year,” Morris Dixon said.
“While that is gloomy and headline grabbing, the next part is not so. In that same report … they anticipated that 97 million new roles will emerge that are more adapted to the new division of labour, so you’re going to lose some jobs, and there are going to be some areas that are emerging,” she said.
She said with a net 12 million new jobs, with AI, robotics and automation at the forefront of this transformation, persons should prepare themselves to join the group that is ready for future jobs.
“AI is here. Next generation robots will follow. In time, more complex automation will become a reality, and we’re seeing it [already],” she said.
Morris Dixon also noted that automation is expected to impact 30 per cent of jobs globally and it is vital to stay current with emerging technology and industry trends.
“We need to figure out in this new age, where do I fit? How am I going to be indispensable to an employer or in my own business? How do I do that?” Morris Dixon said.
“In this dynamic environment, positioning yourself effectively for the future of work and the world ahead means embracing lifelong learning and embracing technology… . Technology is here to stay. You have to embrace it. Don’t throw off coding because ‘IT is not for me’. Coding is a language that’s important as those we speak, and of course, AI is making it much easier,” she said.
“Those who know how to use AI tools are simply more valuable to employers than people who do not know how to use AI. I have someone on my team who uses AI a lot, that is exceptionally productive, and I think productive because of his use of AI,” she said.
During the scholarship luncheon, approximately US$52,000 was issued in scholarships for 2024 to former wards of the state: Amanda Simmonds, Marisha Peddie, Newtana Jackson, Damion James, Grace Lecky, Rayon Davis, Rianna Bryan, Nicola Campbell, Delesha Erskine, David Bernard, Jermaine Wright, Kendle Fung, Okerie Pennant, Christina Williams and Paula Bailey.