Minutes before Trinidad-born Dr Wayne Frederick urged students of Success Laventille Secondary to take advantage of the education presented to them, a volley of gunshots ran out in the crime-riddled community on Friday, leaving one man dead.
The shooting took place around 3 pm at the Old St Joseph Road, a stone’s throw from the school compound. It was the second shooting that took place hours apart in Laventiile.
Frederick, the president of Howard University, USA, returned to his home country to offer Third, Fourth and Fifth Form students of the school a road map to help them strive for excellence in order to get an opportunity to enrol in the university.
This was Frederick’s second visit to the school.
Speaking to the T&T Guardian before addressing the students, Frederick pointed out that obtaining an education was one of the ways in which communities can rise above their adversities and stigmatisation.
Every year, the university enrols between 1,400 to 1,500 students from some 20,000 applicants. Of the 1,500 students, Frederick said the university can offer scholarships to many T&T students and people in various communities.
Though applicants are accepted on criteria, merit and needs, Frederick said they also have to be engaged and interested.
“What we have to emphasise is that education is hope. Sometimes we don’t emphasise that as much. We see neighbourhoods like this suffering those outcomes. What we have to do is recognise that education is a hope and emphasise that.”
While he agreed that Laventille has been stigmatised by crime, Frederick said “what we got to do is juxtapose that lack of hope with the hope of education that the Howard University can give anyone to elevate their circumstances.”
Frederick said life was about making sacrifices, crossing hurdles and reaching goals.
Asked if the university was willing to reach out to gangs members in Laventille to help them turn their lives around, Frederick said yes.
He said the mere fact that the university came to Laventille was to do something constructive.
“Part of what we first have to do is build the credibility. A lot of times in these circumstances they probably aren’t feeling that love. That love comes in different forms. It’s not just about providing money to depressed areas to make things improve. But it sometimes come with the time,” he said.
Having worked with several communities in the US, Frederick said he would provide long-term commitment for Laventille, since good things and people have emerged there.
Frederick, who grew up in Diamond Vale, migrated to the USA where he became a surgeon.
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