By Theresa Goodwin
Members of the Antigua and Barbuda Association for Persons Living with Disabilities will be reaping the benefits of continuous learning through a partnership that has been established with the Lifelong Learning Unit at the University of the West Indies Five Islands Campus.
The unit was established in August 2021 to expose adult learners in the workplace to a diverse range of options to further boost capacity and sharpen their skills.
For the next three months, five individuals — Jahmarie Roberts, Shanisha Fedor, Danielle Lake, Shanica Houston and Kelvin Davis will be pursuing online studies in different disciplines with the unit.
They are the first batch in what is expected to be a longstanding partnership between both entities.
President of the association Bernard Warner said funding for the course was donated by the Commonwealth Foundation.
He said the overall goal is to empower the disabled community.
“This fits the agenda of our organisation because there is an assumption that once you have a disability you cannot function in the workplace. We want to debunk that myth by empowering our people so they can excel in any discipline,” Warner said.
He is optimistic that the group of five will excel in their studies, indicating that this is the first of what is to come.
The Executive Director of the Lifelong Learning Unit, Paul CM Lee, sees this most recent partnership as a major milestone.
“The Lifelong Learning Unit is removing barriers and offering easier access to continuous learning for persons with disabilities. We are all aware that persons with disabilities experience poverty, poor health, lack of education, and sometimes exploitation.
“However, through participation in Lifelong Learning, it is expected that these individuals who are registered for the professional development short courses can become more knowledgeable, gain skills, earn credentials and appropriately position themselves to advocate for the need of persons with disabilities,” Lee said.
About The Author
