The excitement was visible on the faces of young scholarship recipients as Education Minister Hon. Shawn Edward delivered a deep and personal address to the latest group of Saint Lucian students bound for Morocco. His message was simple but powerful; take the opportunity seriously, stay humble, and never lose sight of your identity.
“Consider yourself extremely blessed, if not lucky, that you are a recipient,” he said, reminding the group that their achievement places them among a small number selected from “hundreds, if not thousands of applications” that flow through the Ministry each year.
But his tone quickly shifted from celebration to responsibility. The scholarship, he emphasized, is more than a personal victory. “The scholarship is not your property… it belongs to the government and people of Saint Lucia in partnership with the government and people of Morocco.”
For Edward, representing Saint Lucia abroad is not a symbolic idea but a daily duty, one visible in every action. “How you speak, how you dress, how you conduct yourself is a reflection of 180,000 people in this country,” he warned, underscoring the ambassadorial weight carried by each student.
He encouraged the group to embrace the adventure ahead, to explore, relax, and have fun, but always with moderation. His honesty about past student behavior abroad was refreshing and deliberate. While many Saint Lucians have upheld the country’s reputation in Morocco, others, he admitted, “dropped the ball and did a bit of damage.”
Edward delivered one of the emotional high points of his speech; a call for humility rooted in community. He urged the students never to see themselves as superior simply because they earned a scholarship. “You’re not better than the person living next door… or that girl down the street,” he said. He reminded them that somewhere back home, “there’s this little old lady… praying for you without you knowing it.”
He also spoke candidly about the realities of studying abroad, the loneliness, the pressure, the moments of self-doubt. “There will be days when you will question yourself… maybe I should go home or give up,” he admitted. These experiences, he said, are as integral to their development as the academic work they will complete. “Your strength of character will be tested… that is what makes you the wholesome person who comes back here as the consummate professional.”
He urged students not to compare their relatively comfortable circumstances in Morocco with the more challenging environment many Saint Lucian students face in Cuba. Morocco, he noted, is a wealthy and modern country where students “will have food at your disposal” and access to reliable transportation, comforts not always available to their peers elsewhere.
He reminding the group that the foundation has been built for them, and they, in turn, will help lay the groundwork for future generations. “You’re going to get an education to come back to make a positive, meaningful, and impactful contribution to the development of Saint Lucia.”
