Mind Ova Matter JM

Desanna Watson is a mixed media artist, Art Educator and founder of Creative Gist. She's the winner of the Prince Klaus Fund Seed Award 2021.
She has studied at the Edna Manley College of the Visual and Performing Arts.
She recently completed her artist- in- residence program in Liverpool, England and her work , a seventy feet art piece called Retention of a Colonial Past was on display at Liverpool John Moore University.
Her work has also been exhibited at New Local Space, Kingston for 'La Practica Group Exhibition in 2021.
Working with mixed media on canvas she utilizes town plans, maps , fabric, newspaper articles to create a visual language that explore social issues.
She describes her work as " conversational and informative'" as the combination of history evokes curiosity. 
'i am an artist , not just by profession but  by my very existence "is her mantra

22 year old Gawaine Murray is the CEO of Designa Tyla, a company that designs luxury tiles. Hailing from the tough area of Rockfort in east Kingston, his life could easily have been different.
Although living in a community surrounded by negative influences, Gawaine was able to stay on a positive path through the strong influence of his parents.
After completing High School, he was unable to move on to the tertiary level due to financial constraints but with the help of others, he was able to land a job in the construction industry defying the stereotype that young men from the innercities "nuh want nuh work"
Later when he was laid off he went to work as an apprentice tiler. Over the years he has learnt other trades such as roofing, stone masonry and bricklaying.  
His childhood dream of building his own home was motivation to learn everything about construction.
He recently started his own business defying the odds is now one step close to his dream.
He uses his life to motivate and encourage young men in his community.
He shares his story of determination and courage on Mind 0va Matter JM.

First Generation College student 23 year old Alex Ashley is the winner of the 2022  Lafayette College's The George Wharton Pepper Prize which is awarded annually to the senior who most nearly represents the Lafayette ideal. 
Hailing from the rural area of Treadways in Linstead, St Catherine, the Campion college alum received a full ride scholarship to Lafayette College in 2018. 
He faced several challenges as he had to adjust to life in a new country, new culture and a school that was predominantly white. As a first generation student , he had to navigate on his own by building and making connections.
His goal is to help other Jamaican students and facilitate the transition to college through mentorship.
He enjoys walking up to persons and striking up a conversation  as "school is about networking and about who knows you" 
He has won several awards at Lafayette including the Stem Star Award and has also studied in Germany for a semester and  Madagascar as part of the Lafayette Initiative in 2020.
He recently completed a first degree in Chemical Engineering and will be pursuing a PhD at Drexler University where his research will be on  improving the efficiency solar cell technology.

Seventeen year old Tommi Gore, a rally and circuit Jamaican race car driver is from a family of who have made their mark in in local and regional racing. He's the son of Douglas Gore ,one of Jamaica's best race car driver and the grandson of Neil Gore who raced at Vernamfield.
Tommi is determined to continue the legacy and also make a name for himself in the field of Motorsports.
He started racing at 5 years old as a Go-kart Driver at the Palisadoes International Raceway in Kingston. He has represented Jamaica in Go-kart racing  both locally and internationally..
He's presently the only Jamaican to win several Go- kart races in Barbados and Guyana.
He became the youngest race car driver to compete at Dover Raceway and is the youngest class winner at Drivers Rally Sports Club.
He attributes his success to mental toughness, discipline and fearlessness.
For the future he aims to win the JRDC Modified Production Class 2 Championship.

Dr. Elombe Calvert is on a mission to transform Jamaica's healthcare system through the application of Data Science.
He's 26 years old and the recipient of the 2022 Governor General's Achievement Award for the parish of Westmoreland, He hails from the community of Big Bridge and is a Mannings High alum. He was awarded Top CSEC Male Student in 2013 earning 14 CSEC and 6 CAPE subjects all with distinctions. He completed his his medical degree (MBBS) in 2020 and is currently a Senior House Officer at the University Hospital of the West Indies.
His passion about Data and Healthcare has led him pursue a MSc degree in Applied Data Science. He will continue his studies at Harvard University studying Biomedical Informatics.
He shares his story of serving his internship at the University Hospital of the West Indies during the COVID 19 pandemic and  describes the experience as "challenging as nothing in training prepares you to work in a pandemic". 

Recipient of the Governor General's Achievement Award for Youth Excellence 2020, JCDC Miss Kingston & St. Andrew Festival Queen 2021, Final year law student at the UWI Mona, President of the Mona Law Society, Youth Advocate, Radio Co-host Of Talk up Yout, Producer of Jamaica Live and Speaker are just a few of the hats that 22 year old Tamoy Campbell wears.
An active debater at The University of the West Indies, she has copped several awards while representing the University both locally and internationally. In 2021 she won the highest award of Most Outstanding Delegate at the Harvard National Model UN Competition.
Her interest in Youth leadership started at Wolmer's Trust High School For Girls where she also served  in the  National Secretary Students Council and in the National Youth Parliament of Jamaica.
She share her successes on Mind ova Matter.

19 year old J'Voughnn Blake Captain of Jamaica College's track team , Gold medallist at both the 800m and 1500m at the 2022 Issa/Grace Kennedy Boy's Championships and the Carifta Games heads to Ivy League Dartmouth College in the United States.
His passion for the sciences which started at an early age and his desire to find a cure for cancer has motivated him him to pursue a degree in Molecular Biology.
J'voughnn describes the process of choosing which offer to accept as" overwhelming" as he had received several offers from other Ivy League universities.
He shares how he was able to to attain 13 CSEC subjects and 6 CAPE subjects all with distinctions while still  breaking records as a track athlete.
Hailing  from the innercity of Waterhouse, J'voughnn has demonstrated that choice and not circumstances determines one's success.

CODING HIS WAY TO COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY
Chasing his dreams wherever they take them will have 19 year old Justin Clarke heading to Columbia Engineering School on a scholarship to pursue a degree in Computer Science. A 6th form Student from Campion College who hails from The parish of Portland says his interest in computers started when as a child he stumbled upon a programming book in the library. He began coding at 9 years old and this passion was further ignited in High school where while travelling back and forth from Portland every day to Campion, he used the time to master coding.
In 2021 he won several SPISE awards (Student Program for Innovation in Science and Engineering) which included Top Performer In Computer Programming and Most Creative Electronics Project.

Immaculate Conception High School 6th former and Deputy Head Girl Zariah Ferguson heads to Harvard University on a full ride scholarship. Harvard's offer came as a surprise to her as this was also in a year where the acceptance rate has been the lowest in Harvard's history.
She has worked hard for this starting from her early years at Dunrobin High School where she was the top performer in the GSAT exams . Her academic success continued when she passed 10 subjects in the CSEC Examinations and 5 subjects at the CAPE level, all at Grade ones and during a pandemic.
Her love for Calculus, Physics, Chemistry and Biology has strengthened her decision pursue a degree in Biomedical Engineering.
Coming from humble beginnings, Zaria's motivation is to be an example to other young people to show them that it is possible to achieve all she has and that they can do it too.

At 16 years old, Serena McNeil started her own online company, McNellus Furniture which supplies custom made furniture. Today, three years later the business is still thriving.
An University of Technology Student, she tells how she balances university and entrepreneurship while achieving an A profile for all her courses.
Serena shares her entrepreneurial journey on Mind Ova Matter.