Rhoda Moy Crawford Tells Knox College Graduates Resilience Can Shape Their Future

State Minister for Education, Skills, Youth and Information, Hon. Rhoda Moy Crawford, went back to Knox College in Spalding, Clarendon, on Friday, 3 July, to speak to a graduating class of about 300 students from the school she once attended. Her address focused on staying strong through hardship and refusing to let difficult circumstances decide life's outcome.

Speaking from personal experience, Ms. Crawford traced her path from Greyground in Manchester to a role in the Government of Jamaica. She described the financial pressures and setbacks she faced while growing up and during her years at the Clarendon institution, and said the same guiding principles that shaped her journey were the ones she wanted the new graduates to carry forward.

She encouraged the students to take ownership of their futures rather than allowing present conditions to define what comes next. A person's starting point, she emphasised, need not determine where they end up. Graduates should place no ceiling on who they can become or what they can accomplish, and should not let obstacles pull them off course.

"Know who you are and walk in confidence; if you know who you are and where you want to go and what you need to do to get there, very few people will be able to discourage you along the path," she said.

Ms. Crawford also called on the class to cultivate a drive for excellence, work to stand among the best in their fields, and hold themselves to the highest standards of integrity. "If you try to cheat your way to success, it will be short-lived. To develop a spirit of excellence, you must always be among the best. Always continue to work hard at every step of your journey," she told the graduates.

Real progress, she noted, often requires sacrifice. She recalled helping her mother sell goods at the market to raise money for school instead of spending time with friends.

The minister further urged graduates to treat others with dignity and to keep God at the centre of their lives, no matter how far they rise.

Ms. Crawford presented personal scholarships valued at $50,000 each to Shequan Mattis, towards sixth-form expenses, and Ashley Grant, towards tertiary study. She said both recipients were chosen because of their level of need and because their situations reflected her own experience as a student at Knox.