The Tribune

By EARYEL BOWLEG

Tribune Staff Reporter

ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

EDUCATION officials introduced the new Acting Director of Education Dominique McCartney-Russell yesterday.

This comes after it was announced that former Director of Education Dr Marcellus Taylor will demit office to join the University of The Bahamas’ Government and Public Policy Institute as a senior policy fellow where he will contribute to the formation of public policy for national development.

Education Minister Glenys Hanna Martin thanked him for his contribution to the ministry.

Mrs McCartney-Russell previously served as a district superintendent and was in Abaco during Hurricane Dorian. In 2021, she was awarded the Paul Harris Fellow Humanitarian Award for her work in response to the storm.

In her remarks at a press conference yesterday, she expressed her excitement to serve as the chief technical adviser to the minister and also to be the manager of the public education system in The Bahamas.

“I believe that all children can learn. I think our goal as a nation is to ensure that our children can take care of themselves and contribute positively to our developing nation,” Mrs McCartney-Russell said.

“I am excited to work with my team. I have worked in Abaco, Andros, Grand Bahama and New Providence and I’m a firm believer that every single child has a right to an education, whether they are in New Providence, or they are in Acklins and I have been a fighter for our children.

“Because I want at the end of the day that they are able to take care of themselves. And as we have seen, you know, our children have been out of school, some of them for three years out of the brick and mortar. And so it is incumbent upon all of us to work together as a team if we are going to see the Bahamas we want to see.”

Minister of State for Education Zane Lightbourne commended Mrs McCartney-Russell on her new appointment and said he had worked with the new director when she was a vice principal.

He added: “She knows what it takes to build a team and she is a hard worker, which (are) some of the necessary ingredients for our success and education. So I thank her for her continued years of service to our country and I thank this entire team for their diligence in making sure that our children receive the best quality education that’s to offer.”

Asked what the first thing on her agenda is, Mrs McCartney-Russell said she is a “good listener” and wants to listen to her team.

“I want to ascertain what are some of the issues in regards to our team members. I want to focus a lot on decreasing within schools, variability among our teachers. I would like to address some of the issues that I have been hearing.”

She also spoke about the issues in Abaco.

“We’ve had a number of issues in Abaco related to staff shortage and I’ve felt so supported by this administration.

“We were able to put 30 teachers in Abaco. We do still have a shortage, but what we have done is we have put those, the shortages, we have them in the virtual school. But we are agitating for teachers, those remaining teachers who are awaiting their geographical (allowance) - we are waiting for them to be posted to Abaco. But, like I said, we would have gotten some support in that area.”

She said another concern is the learning loss in schools due to the COVID- 19 pandemic.

“Other concerns for us are the learning losses. Our children, some of them have been out of school for three years, as was said, and we want to ensure that their recovery is accelerated. “And we’re also concerned, like the minister spoke, about school violence. We’re looking at restorative practices, you know, programmes such as clubs and youth organisations, those things that allow our children to collaborate, that allow our children to connect with one another, and perhaps be able to resolve conflicts a little bit better.”