With Alliea Campbell's successful completion of the Fall 2013 Island School semester program in Eleuthera, the number of Bahamian high school graduates who have been gone through the course rose to 30.

Campbell, a merit scholarship recipient of the Bahamian Environmental Steward Scholar (BESS) program fully endorsed by the Ministry of Education, and a graduate of C.V. Bethel Senior School, spent 100 days engaging in marine science research, leadership training, community building, and developing sustainable solutions to local problems.

"This experience has made me realize that there are lots of challenges out there to overcome," said Campbell. She attributed the school's community support and mentorship with helping her achieve her full potential. "I have never done this much ever, until coming to The Island School."

In 2007, the BESS program pioneered out of a partnership between The Island School and the Bahamas Reef Environmental Education Foundation (BREEF) seeking to invest in Bahamian youth as environmental leaders through education and opportunity.

With the BESS scholarship, graduates spend a GAP year attending the Cape Eleuthera Island School's semester program, and a half of their year in the field serving one of a partnership of Bahamian conservation organizations including BREEF, the Bahamas National Trust, The Nature Conservancy, and Friends of the Environment.

In the fall of 2012, The Island School collaborated with the Ministry of Education to create the merit scholarship program. The Island School funded scholarship now provides graduates of government schools the opportunity to participate in the BESS program.

Minister of Education, Science and Technology, Jerome K. Fitzgerald said the willingness of the organizations to partner with the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology with a shared responsibility for the delivery of quality education was commended and valued.

"We are pleased to officially endorse the BESS program, while accepting your gift of a full merit scholarship for a government school student who, having met the established criterion is deemed eligible to participate in the program," said the minister.

The BESS program is currently accepting applications for the fall 2014 and spring 2015 semesters. To learn more about the Bahamian Environmental Steward Scholar program visit www.islandschool.org/admissions/bess/ or like them Facebook at www.facebook.com/pages/BESS-Bahamas-Environmental-Steward-Scholars-programme/168634821326.

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