A teacher at heart

By Glen Herbert

If you ever wonder what scholarships are for, Allan Leach is as good an example as you can get. 

In 2021 he enrolled in the Associate Degree in Primary Education program at the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Community College, though, at least in a sense, he didn’t need to. He was already a full-time teacher, on faculty at the Lower Bay School. 

But he felt there was room to grow. He wanted to hone his skills and, as he said at the time, to “better understand how children learn and grow in the classroom.” He applied to us for a post-secondary scholarship to help with the cost of his tuition. We were delighted to be able to support him in this way. 

Allan describes himself as “a teacher at heart” and it’s hard not to be moved by his dedication to his profession. Born and raised in Hamilton, he says that, “nothing brings you more joy than when you see your students exemplifying what you have taught them … when you can hear parents and students alike say, ‘Oh, well now I understand this’, or, ‘I never liked Math, but the way you teach, I can understand clearly.’”

He is older than the majority of those we support through the scholarship program. Most are secondary students. Some are elementary students, with scholarships offsetting tuition at schools like the one where Allan teaches. 

But what they all share is a dedication to what they’re doing and a desire to do more of it. Scholarships are about helping people find the best soil in which to plant the seeds of their ambition. 

And that’s true of Allan Leach. The right soil for the seed of his ambition was the program at the SVG Community College. With just his practicum yet to complete, he’ll graduate later this spring