61 Nominees Shortlisted for PM’s Youth Awards for Excellence

Story Highlights Sixty-one nominees have been shortlisted under the various categories of the Prime Minister’s Youth Awards for Excellence.

The categories are Academics, Agriculture, Arts and Culture, Entrepreneurship and Social Enterprise, Environment Protection, Innovation, Science and Technology, International Achievement, Journalism, Leadership, Sports and Youth Development.

In addition to the formal Prime Minister’s Youth Awards, there will also be the Jamaica 55 Prime Minister’s Awards for Excellence, where an individual will be selected from 55 communities each across Jamaica and be recognised for their contribution to community development. The Jamaica 55 Awards targets persons who have a solid track record of community service.

Sixty-one nominees have been shortlisted under the various categories of the Prime Minister’s Youth Awards for Excellence.

The ceremony for the awards will be held on December 6 on the East Lawns of Jamaica House, beginning at 5:00 p.m.

The categories are Academics, Agriculture, Arts and Culture, Entrepreneurship and Social Enterprise, Environment Protection, Innovation, Science and Technology, International Achievement, Journalism, Leadership, Sports and Youth Development.

State Minister in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green, told JIS News that this year’s nominees were amazing, adding that the Selection Committee had a hard task of shortlisting the nominees.

“We were very impressed with the responses in Arts and Culture category, but we were hoping to see more nominees in relation to Agriculture. However, all-round, they were good,” the State Minister said.

In addition to the formal Prime Minister’s Youth Awards, there will also be the Jamaica 55 Prime Minister’s Awards for Excellence, where an individual will be selected from 55 communities each across Jamaica and be recognised for their contribution to community development. The Jamaica 55 Awards targets persons who have a solid track record of community service.

According to the State Minister, these nominees must have served their communities very well. He noted that there is no interview process, but selection is largely based on the analysis of the submissions.

Mr. Green noted that the Prime Minister’s Youth Awards over the years target youth who have made national and international impact in the various fields. However, sometimes “we overlook the ones that have served extremely well at the community level but whose contribution may not automatically have national impact”.

“So, we went in search of those persons, and we are heartened by the response,” he said.

The awardees in the Jamaica 55 category will be eligible for project grants to further their community and youth development work.

Nominees for the Prime Minister’s Youth Awards for Excellence 2017 are Academics – Sarah Buckland, Lamar Edgehill, James Peart, Loya Haughton, Abbie-Gayle Johnson, Yohan Lee and Mikeann Channer; Agriculture – Diandra Rowe; Arts and Culture – Shalisha Turpin, Jamar ‘Chronixx’ McNaughton, Akeem Mignott, Shantol Jackson, Aisha Porter-Christie, André Fowles, Gauntlett Stewart, Chevoy Grant, Oshane Robinson, Dario Shields and Reeshena Ball; and Entrepreneurship and Social Enterprise – Christopher Boxe, Conrad Mattison, Nicholas Kee, Tamar McKenzie, Javin Williams, Andrew Higgins and Kadeem Petgrave.

In the category of Environment Protection, there are Kristofferson Nunes, Kelsey Jones and Adrian Watson; Innovation, Science and Technology – Osric Forrest, Jason Edwards, Terrisa Thompson Barnes and Dominic Mills Howell; and for International Achievement – Arthur Williams, Shaneica Lester, Anne-Teresa Birthwright, Shaekagale Williams and Vanessa Grant.

For Journalism, Kimberley Hibbert, Nieka Lewis and Brian Walker are the nominees; Leadership – Malike Kellier, Santana Morris, Andre Marriott-Blake, Sujae Boswell, Naresha Jackson and Christina Plumber; Sports – Llori Sharpe, Elaine Thompson, Odayne Richards, Darren Mattocks and Tyreek Thompson; and Youth Development – the Rotaract Club of St. Andrew, the Jamaica Youth Employment through Culture, Arts and Nationalism (JAYECAN) and the International Youth Fellowship.