Robinson confirmed after 8 years as acting JC principal
Published:Thursday | August 15, 2024 | 12:13 AM
Wayne Robinson, the long-time acting principal of Jamaica College (JC), has been confirmed as headmaster of the all-boys’ institution in St Andrew.
Robinson’s confirmation was made effective by the Ministry of Education, from September 1, 2022, according to Board Chairman Lance Hylton.
“The entire Jamaica College school community is ecstatic at this long-awaited development as Robinson ... has led the school with distinction and excellence,” he said in a press statement.
Robinson, 61, has served as JC’s acting principal since March 2016, following the departure of former principal Ruel Reid, who took special leave to assume the role of education minister.
Reid resigned from the post of education minister in March 2019 amid a corruption scandal that has led to criminal charges.
However, Reid formally remained JC’s principal until November 2021, when he resigned.
In a letter dated August 2, 2024, acting Chief Education Officer Terry-Ann Thomas Gayle informed Hylton that the ministry had approved Robinson’s permanent appointment, and instructed that he be notified in writing.
Raised concerns over qualification
The Teachers’ Services Commission, responsible for senior appointments within the education system, initially raised concerns in May 2022, noting that Robinson “does not have three years of service as a trained teacher in a public educational institution”.
“Kindly submit a letter justifying the board’s selection and a request to waive the requirements for appointment to the post,” it asked the JC board.
In response, the JC board highlighted an October 2019 letter from Dr Kasan Troupe, who was then acting chief education officer, stating that Robinson had attained trained graduate status based on his master’s degree from Western Carolina University in the United States.
“They [the ministry] had confirmed from then that his qualifications ... were beyond the requirements,” Hylton reiterated in an interview with The Gleaner yesterday.
Responding to questions about Robinson’s acting status in May 2024, Troupe, who is now the permanent secretary in the ministry, said two things were impacting a final decision.
She said the service commission was still assessing the JC board’s recommendation, and further that the ministry was awaiting a response from the school to an audit that she said was requested by Education Minister Fayval Williams.
“We have not seen from the report any matter that we have not seen in other schools,” Troupe said, without disclosing any specific findings during a post-Cabinet media briefing on May 29. “We are working through those and, once those are settled as we have communicated to the board, then the minister will give her instruction on the matter.”
Yesterday, the JC board chairman told The Gleaner that “the ministry did subsequently say that they were satisfied with their investigations and other checks they did, so they have confirmed him (Robinson)”.
Hylton also said the issues surrounding Robinson’s qualification were “resolved”, and pointed to Troupe’s October 2019 letter.
“They (ministry) had confirmed from then that his qualifications ...were beyond the requirements.”
Robinson, a long-time educator, is a director and former principal of Quality Academics, a private educational institution.