Hi! My name is Amanda Bertrand. In September of 2014, I made a decision to commit myself to the role of an educator at the primary level. From the moment I saw the class of twenty-three young faces, though admittedly nervous and experiencing a flood of emotions, I felt a sense of belonging and responsibility, and beamed with pride because in that moment, I understood the importance of my profession and the role I play in the creation of upstanding, positively contributing members of society. This passion for the profession made the decision of pursuing a Bachelor of Education degree at the University of the West Indies an easy one. Not only did I feel like I owed it to my students to be knowledgeable and the best fit as their teacher, but I felt motivated to become the best version of myself, for myself, and for the children whose futures I held in my hands. This program, therefore, served as a platform to continue the quest of growing academically and the experience is sure to propel me into the realms of decision and policy making in the education system.
Having had teaching experience since then, coupled with the knowledge gained from additional courses and workshops, it was quite apparent that Trinidad and Tobago’s education system is in critical need of radical reform. Since then, it has been a dream of mine to create a curriculum tailored to our Caribbean experience, to not only produce innovators, scholars and performers, but to increase our cultural capital and further develop our cultural artforms through formal education. While there are moves toward this initiative, I felt compelled to be a part of this process and offer ideas and strategies to make this possible but more importantly, effective. Thus, it is important for me to once again, further my education so that I can contribute from a place of knowledge and experience. In March, I got the fantastic news that I had been admitted to the Learning Design Innovation and Technology program at Harvard Graduate School of Education. I believe this specific program is ideal to my personal and professional goals, especially now that we are experiencing remote learning due to the pandemic.
This as you can well imagine is not a simple undertaking. I would therefore need to undergo fundraising initiatives to make this dream a reality. Due to the COVID restrictions, I am not able to put forward as many events as I would like for this to happen and so, have set up this page to assist with fund raising. I am therefore inviting you to partner with me by contributing any financial assistance towards my tuition. I am committed to the vision and firmly believe that this would not only be a life changing opportunity, but the experience will allow me to work within the Ministry of Education to secure a future for Trinidad and Tobago, and by extension the Caribbean.

Banking Info
FCB Acct #2629704
Amanda Claire Olufemi Bertrand