HENRY
THE WOMEN'S Caucus of the Jamaica Teachers Association (JTA) is to play a greater role under the leadership of president-elect, Hopeton Henry.
Speaking at a ceremony honouring retired principals at the Terra Nova Hotel in St. Andrew on Saturday night, Mr. Henry noted that the caucus currently sits "on the periphery" of the annual JTA conference.
"The teaching profession has about 80 per cent of women serving. I want to make this shift where we move the Women's Caucus from a little meeting before the conference, to take in a very big slice of the deliberations of conference," he said. He said too that things which are important to female teachers, should also concern men in the profession.
Mr. Henry told his audience that a part of his mandate is to lobby for the pension of retiring teachers and principals to be indexed to those currently serving in similar positions. "As I get closer to the centre, this is something I want to advocate for strongly," he declared.
SERVICES TO THE NATION
And, the JTA president-elect implored retired teachers and principals to become entrepreneurs and offer their services to the nation. "We need to look at repositioning ourselves in the role of consultants, those who are willing and able to work," he argued.
Professor Errol Morrision, also speaking at the function, encouraged retired educators to do their part in preparing the Jamaican workforce technologically to allow for the progress of the region. "We are ill-prepared for the globalised knowledge-based economy and we need to change that paradigm," he said.
