Baksh announces changes at Carnegie
THE Carnegie School of Home Economics, at High and D’Urban Streets, Georgetown, is set to undergo sweeping changes, reflecting the current demands of the country, particularly the rapidly expanding hospitality sector.
Education Minister Shaik Baksh made the announcement at a recent meeting with the newly constituted Board of the premier school for teaching catering in this country.
Outlining a new vision for the institution, he pointed to the need for it to include hospitality among other related areas of national needs.
Baksh said the present name of the school should reflect the hospitality focus and he expressed confidence in the new directors to realise the revised programme.
He said the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) has conducted a feasibility study on the conversion of Carnegie to a hospitality training institute and the report is expected to be submitted to his ministry this month end.
But the Bank has submitted a preliminary report and some of the findings were highlighted by Baksh to the Board members.
He said the report recommends that the school needs to be upgraded in terms of physical infrastructure, organisational changes and staffing faculty.
The compilation also pointed to the need for the development of new programmes, notably in the areas of customer service, health and safety measures and entrepreneurship, Baksh said.
Those proposals aside, he implored the Board to incorporate Information Technology (IT) in the delivery of their courses and have basic literacy and numeracy as compulsory parts of the curriculum, while re-equipping the school.

Closer relationship
Baksh also charged the new Board to look at meeting the certification requirements of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME), establishing a closer relationship with industries and issues regarding institutional strengthening.
Meanwhile, he said the final compendium will be made available to the Board for discussion before proposals to realise the new vision are put forward.
Baksh urged the Board to merge the Craft Production and Design Unit to ensure greater operational efficiency and said Carnegie will have a role to play in showcasing its work on the Education Broadcasting Television Service  to be launched this month-end.
Chairman of the Board, Mr. John Seeram, reflecting on its life, said the school has tried to fulfil, to a large extent, the pressing needs and demands for technical and vocational education and training in the areas of Home Economics, Tourism and Hospitality.
He acknowledged the growing demand for qualified staff at major hotels, such as Pegasus, Princess and Grand Coastal, justifying the necessity for more tutors to train more students.
Seeram said, over the year in review, approximately 1,500 students were registered for full time, evening or special programmes, 1,200 of whom are for evening classes.
He said the major plus for Carnegie is that its catering arm has been making significant progress when judged from the demands for its services.
The income accrued was $14M and the major clients were government ministries, the University of Guyana (UG) and private entities.
The work of the school falls under the Technical Education and Vocational Training Programme, which is a vital component of the 2008-2013 Education Strategic Plan, a release from the ministry stated.