Barry Griffin Jr. had no reason not to excel academically. He is naturally ambitious with a go-getter personality. That coupled with his upbringing in a home with parents who were focused on education and gave him all the support he needed translated into a young man who was an honor student for the duration of his academic life. Today, Barry is in the process of winding up his education at Bar School in London, and preparing to enter the workforce. But without a doubt, the 24-year-old Bar School student credits his parents' support with his drive to get him to where he is today. "Home was the starting point for me, so my upbringing is also equally responsible, because my parents, Barry Griffin Sr. and Marie Griffin, were very focused on education.
As far back as I can remember, back to my primary school days, they were always the first parents at a Parent Teacher Association (PTA) meeting. On report card day they were speaking with every teacher trying to find out about my progress and how I could improve. They were just involved with my school life," he said. Barry says school and homework was always a dinner table conversation at his house, which reinforced education as a part of his life. "It was what I knew. It was expected that I did well in school. And they gave me the support that lent to it, so it wasn't just an expectation without the support. They provided me with what I needed to do well." He said it was during his tenth grade year that his education took on a new trajectory as his excitement for education grew.
Looking to expand his resume he also got involved in more extracurricular activities as he looked at the opportunities that could be afforded him. Extraordinary year In 2005 his new focus culminated in what he terms was his most extraordinary year. Barry was named Gentleman of the Year. He won the Texaco Speech Competition and was named National Road Safety Spokesperson for Texaco and the Ministry of Transport and Aviation. On the conservative side he earned in the range of $90,000 and $100,000 in scholarship money. He opted to attend St. John's University in Minnesota where he earned a Bachelor's degree in International Relations and Economics.
It was while at St. John's University that he decided to pursue a law degree, because all of his interests seemed to intersect at law. "I was chairman of our student senate for all four years at St. John's. I was part of an entrepreneurial scholars student program ... we started businesses and helped local entrepreneurs to run their businesses and through that program I got to travel the world -- we went to China to meet business people, we went to Silicone Valley in California to meet tech entrepreneurs. I was president of the International Affairs Society at one point and represented St. John's at the Harvard Model United Nations Conference where I won an award for being the outstanding achiever at the conference.
My pursuits were very varied -- business, economics, entrepreneurship, international relations -- and they all seemed to come together at the law point. So combining my interest in business and society and global affairs seemed to be a good fit for me." During his junior year he started looking at law schools in the United States and the United Kingdom. He applied and was accepting into King's College, London. After receiving in the region of $100,000 to study towards his Bachelor's degree, the burden to pay for law school rested on his parents. Because he was able to save them money early on through the scholarship assistance he received, his parents were able to facilitate his law school dreams.
"They [parents] always knew I intended to do a second degree, so from my junior year we were having conversations about where I wanted to go, how much the tuition was looking like, what a scholarship would look like," he said. "But I always wanted to contribute to my education and to help my parents out. And I have a little sister [Barrise] who I knew was going to want to go to college as well, so I was always cognizant of that." Role model Barry said he was happy the scholarships he received was able to provide some relief to his parents. He even held down on-campus jobs while at St. John's and in law school for his pocket money. But he is not the only over-achiever, his sister, Barrise, is a chip off the old block as well.
While Barry was named Gentleman of the Year 2005, Barrise was named Debutante of the Year in 2012. She too has received scholarship money towards her Bachelor's degree. And if you ask her, she says she studied her older brother, watched what he did and followed suit. She describes herself as a mini-Barry. "I see how ambitious he is and I wasn't very ambitious, but then I picked up his work ethic and became ambitious as well. I'm impressed by him because he's passionate about what he does and he does not take no for an answer. He's a go-getter," said Barrise. Barry in turn says one of his motivating factors is his little sister.
"I want to be a good example of what she can do and more. I want to be the person nudging her along the way by leading by example," he said. And he certainly is, even though he said he has had his share of struggles which people may not have seen. Case-in-point, Barry said he hates Math, which he does not think most people realize. "Without a doubt I hate Math," he said. "I think I was always more of a wordy person, so anything that involves reading and writing I gravitate to -- so History, English Language, English Literature, those were my subjects in school and when it came to the more quantitative-based subjects -- Math and Physics, those were not.
For those subjects I knew I didn't like them so I had to double down my efforts. I did well in those classes which may have given the view that I loved it and was doing well, but I did well because I knew I didn't like them, so I had to work that much harder," he said. Find help Barry encourages the youth to find what interests them in school and to do more of it. He said when they do, it makes the education process easier and a lot more fulfilling. Where they need help, he encourages them to find it. "They may not be the best at every single subject, but try to find the support -- whether it's parents, teachers or friends, in areas where you need help. And areas where you're excelling that you love, go full steam ahead."
"The world is very global now and I wanted to have the best education from anywhere in the world. And any Bahamian student should strive to have their resumes be as international as possible, because we have bright students in The Bahamas and we can very well go head-to-head with anyone from around the world. And for me it was only possible through scholarship assistance," he said. Barry also said the transition from college to law school was tough. "I did a lot of reading and writing in my first degree in the US, but law school is a whole different ball game.
The amount of reading and writing that you have to do is insane, so I had to quickly get on top of that, but I'm happy to say the grades kept up and I did well." So well in fact that Barry was selected as one of the top students in his year and was one of four students who had the pleasure to moot (participate in a simulated court proceeding) for Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II in 2012, as part of her diamond jubilee celebrations. The Queen was on hand to open Somerset House, the new home of King's College School of Law.
Through all of his accomplishments to date, Barry said without a sound educational base, he would not have been able to accomplish what he has. As he readies to finish Bar School in August, he is currently applying for positions in the UK and at home to begin the professional chapter of his life. His focus is on finishing Bar School strong and then focusing on commercial law geared towards finance and litigation. He credits the sound education he received early on to his parents -- especially his mother who he said is his inspiration. "There are people that I admire, but she is the person that most inspires me. I see her life -- the way she lives and how hard she works -- and I just want to emulate that, and to do well to show her that I'm thankful for all that she's done and sacrificed." Barry is presently president of Gray's Inn. He's also president of the young lawyers and student barristers association.
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