by Linda Straker
- TAMCC began operations on 1 July 1988
- On 1 January 2024, Dr John N Telesford appointed Acting Principal
- Calls to principal’s office and the administration department went unanswered
Jude Bartholomew, President of the Grenada Union of Teachers (GUT), is calling on the management of the T A Marryshow Community College (TAMCC) to remove cameras recently installed in classrooms at the tertiary educational institution.
“What we know is that this is against the laws… the college lecturers are asking or looking for the cameras to be removed,” Bartholomew said during a news conference on Friday, 19 January 2024.
“It is posing a problem,” said Bartholomew. “Even the students are not comfortable with that; they are having cameras directly in the classrooms.”
“We are hoping that the Ministry of Education, the Council, and other parties at the TAMCC will basically do what they have to do and move the cameras in the classroom before this matter escalates, and we hope this matter will be settled soon,” he said.
Calls to the principal’s office and the administration department of the college to explain the reason behind the installation of the cameras went unanswered.
Established by an Act of Parliament, the TAMCC began operations on 1 July 1988 by a merger of The Grenada Teachers College, The Grenada Technical and Vocational Institute, The Institute for Further Education, The National Institute of Handicraft, The Mirabeau Agricultural Training School, The Domestic Arts Institute, The Continuing Education Programme and The School of Pharmacy. It aimed to provide accessible quality educational and training opportunities to help individuals achieve their personal and professional goals and to cater to the changing needs of the labour market in our developing society.
After Dr Ronald Brunton, who served for just over 2 years as principal, tendered his resignation, on 1 January 2024, the College Council appointed Dr John N Telesford to the post of Acting Principal for 7 months. Additionally, Marva Bowen-Neptune was appointed to act as Deputy Principal, with oversight for Administration and Human Resources.
These cameras should have been installed long before. If they were in, then my son during his first year 2022-2023 might have had some classes instead of the nothing he got from the “no-show” teachers!
Is there something to hide??? and why would the union support such foolish request to have the cameras removed??? What are the lecturers trying to hide… I hope parents see the value with these cameras in their child/ren classes.
I was a school teacher for 43 years and I would not fear cameras in my classroom, rather I welcome them as a security feature for the school.
Cameras sound great we wiill be able to see what is going on in the nations class rooms