MS. LAVERN Thorne is the latest Guyanese to be awarded a full scholarship under the European Union’s Erasmus Mundus Scholarship programme, to read for an International Master’s in Early Childhood Education and Care at the Oslo and Akershus University in Norway. While she will begin her studies in Norway from August 2012, for a five month period, she will also spend five months each in Malta and Ireland.
Ms. Thorne is currently employed at the Ministry of Education and is working on the Cadet programme, where she is receiving training to become an Education Officer. She is also a trained teacher out of the Cyril Potter Training College, graduating in 2000, and taught at the Leonora Nursery School until 2010, when she joined the Cadet Programme. She is also a graduate of the University of Guyana in 2009, with a Bachelor’s Degree in Early Childhood Education, for which she graduated with distinction.
She met recently with Head of Delegation of the European Union to Guyana, Ambassador Robert Kopecký, for a brief chat on her award and her expectations over the next two years as she pursues her scholarship. She expressed great surprise and appreciation at her selection, and highlighted that she had applied in November 2011. Ms. Thorne envisions returning to Guyana to use her training to develop education and literacy and wants to continue working in the field for which she expresses a great passion and commitment.
The European Union’s Erasmus Mundus programme aims to enhance quality in higher education worldwide, through scholarships and academic cooperation between Europe and the rest of the world. The programme is named after the 15th century Dutch philosopher Desiderius Erasmus, of Rotterdam, who lived and worked in many places in Europe to expand his knowledge and gain new insights. At the same time, ERASMUS is an acronym meaning European Community Action Scheme for the Mobility of University Students. The Erasmus Mundus programme supports top-quality Master’s Courses offered by European university consortiums, and provides EU-funded scholarships. By enabling students and visiting scholars from around the world to engage in postgraduate study at European universities, Erasmus Mundus intends to prepare the participants for life in a global, knowledge-based society.