Kemaletta Campbell: A shining example for her community

“I came to leave my mark and I am going to make sure that you never forget me!” These were the bold, parting words uttered by Kemaletta Campbell when she was interviewed for the National Baking Company Foundation’s Little Leaders Teachers’ Scholarship.

Indeed, she left a lasting mark, as her bold statement, along with a rousing story detailing why she deserves a full scholarship to continue her teacher training, helped her to secure the first-place spot.

When she found out she was awarded the scholarship, an overwhelmed and overjoyed Campbell said, “This scholarship is just the foot in the door I need right now.”

She, like so many other early childhood educators, has been experiencing financial struggles, compounded by the fact that she is the breadwinner for her family. She has not been able to complete her bachelor’s degree in early childhood education – a course she began years ago.

“Teachers are training now and they are not getting a training teacher’s salary, so with a degree, it opens up windows and possibilities, but some of us just can’t afford to get a degree,” she said.

The 38-year-old principal of Morgan’s Basic School in Spanish Town, St Catherine, is the only trained teacher at the school and she says teacher training makes a world of a difference.

“Being the only trained teacher here sometimes, I can guide my staff in the way that I was trained; not that I will get it right all the time, but it gives you an edge,” she said.

Campbell said the scholarship and finishing the degree she started at the St Joseph’s Teachers’ College can only help her and other teaching staff at her school be better educators to the young minds they have in their care.

a believer IN giving back

To her, the scholarship matters so much more as she is a firm believer in giving back. In fact, Campbell, with the help of various family members and other schools in her school zone, has taken on the charitable act of providing hot meals prepared in the basic school’s kitchen.

Every Friday, for the last two years, the programme has been feeding more than 50 of the student population and approximately 80 homeless persons in the neighbouring communities with a hefty, healthy bowl of soup and sandwiches.

Campbell said the children, parents and the community at large would riot if they missed their Friday soup, but even doing that, she says, has been difficult to finance at times.

Nevertheless, Campbell insists that having seen her parents, who were known in the Spanish Town community as loving caregivers, give back to their community, it is her time and duty to give back as well. For her, Morgan’s Basic School offers a chance to give back through education and food.

Additionally, she says now that she will be back on track with her studies, both her educational and charitable endeavours can only flourish.

“I am so grateful for this opportunity to better myself. The only drawback with this scholarship is that I wish there were more. Can you imagine the amazing stories of the teachers in need? I wish there were 10 and not three scholarships, because it is so needed,” she said.

This is the second year of the National Baking Company Foundation’s Little Leaders Teachers’ Scholarship. In its continuing effort to promote accessible and quality early childhood education, the foundation awarded 10 scholarships and three grants totalling $5.6 million for the 2019-2020 academic year.