BEYOND the bright lights of Georgetown, Guyana’s capital city, life throughout the country’s vastness differs from place to place, each community unique in its own way. Yet the pursuit of education remains universal, with women like Marlyn Brown leading the way as champions of learning.

The teacher and mother of five says that coming from a single-parent home showed her that women are capable of more than they know. Now pursuing her bachelor’s degree, Marlyn hopes to pave the way for more women to pursue greater pursuits.

Before becoming the inspirational powerhouse she is today, Marlyn grew up in a family of seven, with five sisters and three brothers. This was where she gained her ambition, watching her mother work for her family and raise successful children; Marlyn was motivated to take it one step further. Reflecting on her mother, she states, “My mom helped financially. She was never someone who was sitting there waiting for things; she would go out there to work. What she used to say is that you have to study; you have to educate yourself, and you have to work for your own money. Nobody is going to put things in your pocket. You have to do it; you have to get it.”

After completing school, Marlyn, like many young women in her community, faced limited career options. Following her older sister’s advice, she pursued teaching, one of just a few choices. “You would have known that after you completed your CXC, you can become a teacher, you can become a police officer, you can become a nurse,” she explains. “I had two other sisters. One of them went to Brazil when she hadn’t completed her work. The other one is a teacher now; a qualified teacher, too. Growing up, I had two other siblings that I would look after.”

After becoming a teacher, Marlyn felt inspired to do more. She undertook a training course with the Board of Industrial Training. Although a simple venture, it sparked her enthusiasm for learning new skills she could bring back to both her community and classroom. “I’m a teacher at the primary school, completed my teacher’s training. I also did a programme with the Board of Industrial Training and Commercial Preparation, where I learned new skills. This has been very helpful in my classroom, I have found it to be very helpful, in that you do the practical part of teaching, and then the theory, you’ll be better able to explain.”

Marlyn is currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree online in the heart of the Rupununi. But she does not plan to stop there; her dream is to be part of the region’s thriving tourism landscape, though she says she needs more skills first. “At the moment, I am doing a bachelor’s degree in leadership, education, and business. That is where I am presently in terms of my qualifications and my career life. However, regarding the Board of Industrial Training, I would like to further upgrade myself to do more like enter tourism, so that I can be able to uplift my community. I already have the main foundation in commercial food preparation, but not for tourism.”

Since her school years, Marlyn’s village of Kwatamang has changed, particularly in terms of education. With the addition of internet access, her community, like many others, is seeing more scholars emerge with improved connectivity. “Life has changed growing up here in my village. Growing up here, it was fun doing outdoor playing. Learning was difficult then in my days because we did not have phones and we never had internet service. You had to go to the library. You had no phones to google anything, but now everything is just online, and you can get your answer there and have everything at hand.”

Marlyn’s days are packed as a full-time teacher, mother, and student. She credits much of her success to her husband. Despite the challenges she faces juggling multiple tasks in her daily life, Marlyn says her children remain her biggest priority. “I have five children. Two of them are still at secondary, but the three other ones are small. My big son is 19. He’s a graduate of the President’s College. He’s a teacher now, and I have one who is in grade 10 at the moment. She is a scholarship student; she is about to write her CXC next year.”

All across Guyana, strides are being made in work, infrastructure, and, perhaps most impactfully, education. Women like Marlyn are among a growing demographic aiming to develop themselves as well as their communities.

As a community leader and member of her village’s women’s group, Marlyn encourages other women to chase their passions and believe that their goals are attainable. “For my women in the community, I think that nothing is too difficult to achieve. You have to put your mind to it. You have to set aside time, especially if you want to elevate yourself. I prioritize to see what I can do best to help others. I’m not only depending on myself or want to have things for myself, but I see it as a community benefit. Others must benefit from what I do.”

The development and support of education in all corners of Guyana, for both men and women, is the first step in pioneering a better future for the country.