Junior partner in the Canje block offshore Guyana, Mid-Atlantic Oil & Gas, is one of several companies supporting the Queen’s College of Guyana Alumni Association (NY), Inc. (QCAANY) 2019 Math Institute Summer Camp.
For the fourth consecutive year, QCAANY will be hosting the Queen’s College Summer Math Institute (QCSMI) for two weeks beginning on July 29 and ending on August 9 at Queen’s College in Georgetown, Guyana. The QCSMI will run Monday through Friday from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM, with daily lunch and snacks provided at no cost to participating students.
The target group of this enrichment program is rising third and fourth form students from Queen’s College, Bishops’ High School, St. Roses High School, St. Joseph’s and Saint Stanislaus College.
The QCSMI aims to sustainably implement a developmentally–appropriate and culturally resonant middle school learning environment that engages Guyanese students in a cognitively rich mathematics learning experience that affirms and aligns with their cultural and social identities and places them securely on pathways to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) excellence. The program combines significant mathematical content with a setting that encourages a sense of discovery and excitement about math through problem solving and exploration.
The objectives of the QCSMI are to:
- Attract high school students in Guyana to mathematical sciences and to motivate them to excel in the subject;
- Introduce high school students and their parents to the notion of mathematics as theory; and
- Sensitize students and their parents to futures linked with mathematics, including, but not limited to, careers as mathematicians, math educators, research scientists, computer scientists, economists or business leaders.
A number of field trips are planned as complementary activities, and are integral to the QCSMI experience. Among these are trips to the Hydrometeorological Service at Timehri, the Guyana National Bureau of Standards, and Demerara Distilleries Limited. The field trips are intended to demonstrate the use of mathematical principles in real-world scenarios. Additionally, local professionals in STEM-based disciplines will speak with students about STEM career options.
This year, the program will be led by mathematician, Dr. Cleveland Waddell, Queen’s College alumnus and Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics from North Carolina State University. Dr. Waddell will be supported by Mr. John Campbell, President of QCAANY, Shifiera Surujballi, member of the QCAANY, Ms. Ede Tyrell, Queen’s College alumna and University of Guyana lecturer who specializes in Microbiology in the Department of Medical Technology of the Faculty of Health Sciences, Ms. Dianne Henry, Queen’s College teacher, and other Queen’s College friends and supporters.
This year’s program is made possible through sponsorships from Mid-Atlantic Oil and Gas Inc., Guyana Logistics & Support Services Inc. and Banks D.I.H. Mathematics-based software is being provided by Maplesoft.
In addition to the QCSMI program, QCAANY has consistently supported science-oriented students and programs at Queen’s College. Since 2000, through its Vernley Ward Bursary, QCAANY has awarded scholarships to 1st and 2nd year students enrolled at the University of Guyana who have distinguished themselves in the area of chemistry while at Queen’s College. QCAANY helped create the school’s first computer lab in the late 1990s and continues to collaborate with other alumni chapters to refurbish and upgrade equipment in the computer, physics and biology labs. More recently, QCAANY has focused on funding enrichment programs and social services to students. Student conferences have been held each academic year since 2014. The welfare of students is not forgotten, with the association funding the annual salary of QC’s first social worker who provided badly need services to students at the school, and also funding child advocacy and mental health services in Guyana. Being aware of the importance of sports, QCAANY has been on the forefront of the revitalization of sports at Queen’s College. Just recently, QCAANY along with friends and supporters, has overseen the refurbishing of the school’s sports field, assisted with the funding of the Queen’s College Cricket team’s annual trips to the Garfield Sobers Cricket Tournament in Barbados and created a fund to provide financial support to girls sports at QC.
Broadly stated, the organization’s mission is to contribute significantly to the advancement and improvement of education in Guyana.
