Minister of Education, Science & Technology, the Hon. Jerome K. Fitzgerald to Receive an Award at This Year's Education Business Forum in New York

Tue, Dec 6th 2016, 05:10 PM

On Friday, December 9th 2016, the Hon. Jerome K. Fitzgerald will be one of two recipients of the Friend of the Industry Award to be presented at the Education Business Forum in New York, USA. This 2-day forum is hosted by the Education Technology Industry Network (ETIN) of the Software and Information Industry Association (SIIA).

Minister Fitzgerald along with Senator Angus King, Maine’s first Independent Unites States Senator are the recipients of this year’s Friend of the Industry Award. Both recipients’ public service achievements have improved teaching and learning opportunities for educators and students.

The Hon. Jerome K. Fitzgerald has been working feverishly during his tenure as education minister to raise the bar and close the achievement gap within the public school system through a concentrated focus on improving the high school graduation rate. The goal of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST) is to increase the high school graduation rate from 50% to 85% by 2030. This is the thrust of the “Shared Vision for Education 2030”, a bi-partisan policy on education.


The Hon. Jerome K. Fitzgerald, Minister of Education, Science and Technology

In recent years, the Ministry of Education embarked on an aggressive initiative to upgrade technology in our public junior and senior high schools, investing more than $6million. Through the INSPIRE project, the MoEST has created partnerships with Promethean and Microsoft to enhance the teaching and learning process within public school classrooms. Teachers are now being encouraged to embrace technology in the classroom and use it as a tool to add value to the learning experience. In short, the MoEST will implement an Education Management Information System (EMIS) throughout public schools as it seeks to keep a closer eye on students to prevent them from ‘falling through the cracks’. It will also increase accountability up and down the education system.

The education Minister, has garnered the respect of education professionals around the globe as he is the Chair of the Commonwealth Education Ministers as well as Chair of the Committee on Education for Education Ministers of the Organization of American States.

Many countries are looking at the Bahamian education system and some of the initiatives that have been recently implemented as a model for adaptation in their respective countries. While many argue that our system is broken, there are more things right than wrong. The global education community has noted with keen interest the Shared Vision for Education 2030, the Preschool Expansion Project  and the INSPIRE Project among others.

The Education Business Forum is regarded as the premier NYC event for education business leadership and the investor community. This annual conference brings together senior management teams of education software companies, platform technology firms, solution providers and distributors, publishers, private equity firms and venture capitalists.

Following the awards presentation on Friday morning, Minister Fitzgerald and Senator Angus King will be interviewed by EdWeek Marketplace’s Michele Molnar and will discuss the transformation of two-nation states fueled by innovation in education and technology. The two will share important lessons for policy design and implementation, highlighting how business and industry supported their efforts. Moreover, given the outcomes of recent elections favoring protectionist trade and immigration policies, they will also discuss the consequences for business and education and the prospect for realizing such change across the globe.


Senator Angus King, Independent Senator, Maine Delaware

For more information on The Bahamas Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, visit www.ministryofeducationbahamas.com.

Source: Ministry of Education, Science and Technology

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