The Regional Accelerator for STEM Students Readiness (RASSR) Programme has retained 79 per cent of its participants in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields, while 98 per cent have remained engaged in the programme overall, signalling the growing impact of a University of Guyana-led initiative aimed at nurturing the country’s next generation of scientists, engineers, researchers and innovators.
Now in its fifth year, the programme was conceived by University of Guyana Vice-Chancellor Professor Paloma Mohamed Martin, whose reflections on the futures of exceptionally gifted students she encountered through her work with the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) prompted questions about how their talents were being developed after they left secondary school.
Those questions eventually led to the creation of RASSR, which was established in 2022 through a partnership between the University of Guyana and the Greater Guyana Initiative (GGI), comprising ExxonMobil Guyana, Hess Corporation and CNOOC Petroleum Guyana Limited.
The programme identifies high-performing secondary school students from all 10 administrative regions and provides them with intensive learning experiences in STEM disciplines, while helping to ensure that talented students are recognised and supported regardless of their geographic location or background.
“I honestly believe that we have geniuses among us. We spend a lot of time, as we should, dealing with vulnerable kids, but there’s the other side of the spectrum, the ones who are really, really talented and gifted, who I think we also need to find and nurture,” Professor Mohamed Martin said.
RASSR focuses on areas such as Mathematics, Chemistry, Biology, Physics, Integrated Science, Technology, Engineering, biodiversity and environmental stewardship. Participants are also exposed to activities designed to strengthen critical thinking, leadership, teamwork and problem-solving skills.
Professor Mohamed Martin said ensuring equitable access was among the programme’s central objectives, particularly for students living outside traditional centres of opportunity.
“I’m always very interested in making sure that not only children who are in an easy-to-reach geographic area could benefit, but also students from everywhere. Once they had the talent and they showed the scores, then we could try to do it,” the Vice-Chancellor said.
She explained that RASSR was also intended to help build a sustainable pipeline of young people pursuing STEM careers by exposing participants to the range of professional opportunities available in those fields.
“We were trying to find a way with GGI to direct resources straight to communities and to build a pipeline of new scientists who would stay in STEM,” Professor Mohamed Martin said.
“If they showed an interest in it at an early age, we wanted to see if we could help them to understand all of the careers that could be there, but also to help them to stay,” she added.
The programme’s development required the support of a broad network of university personnel, volunteers, mentors and other stakeholders, particularly during its early stages, which coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The first year we did this, it was COVID, it was 2021,” Professor Mohamed Martin recalled, noting that the initiative was built largely on the commitment, passion, belief and courage of people within the University.
She credited staff members and support personnel from the Department of Events, Conferences and Communications (DECC), the Vice-Chancellor’s Office, the Partnerships and Advocacy for Community Engagement (PACE) unit and the University’s custodial staff, among others, for helping to transform the initial concept into a national programme.
Since its establishment, RASSR has continued to evolve, with each cohort contributing lessons that have informed improvements to the initiative.
“We’re now into our fifth year. Year after year, we learn, we iterate, we upgrade, we change,” Professor Mohamed Martin said.
She noted that the programme’s success depends on a wider network of academics, mentors, volunteers and support personnel who work behind the scenes to support participants throughout their experience.
For the Vice-Chancellor, however, the most meaningful measure of success lies not only in the opportunities students receive during the programme, but also in the educational and professional paths they pursue afterwards.
“It’s joy, not pride,” she said, referring to the progress of former participants.
“To see that we actually have students who were accelerated, who came into this University at 14 and 15, and who are still here… To also see that they could feel the sense of service and commitment to come back, those who have graduated and work with the younger ones,” she added.
With several cohorts now progressing through secondary and tertiary education, RASSR is beginning to demonstrate the long-term value of investing early in high-achieving students.
For the University of Guyana, the continued participation of students in STEM disciplines and the willingness of graduates to return as mentors and supporters are among the clearest indications that the programme is fulfilling its objective of developing a new generation of skilled professionals committed to advancing Guyana’s scientific and technological future.