DGS goes into entrepreneurship mode

One of Dominica’s oldest schools is now well positioned to directly benefit from a mentor-ship program aimed at making participants work force ready.

Twenty-four students from the Dominica Grammar School (DGS) Junior Achievement (JA) Program have embarked on a small business venture to launch a facial product through a company “Natural Erase” and they are getting a helping hand from the Invest Dominica Authority (IDA) and the Discover Dominica Authority (DDA).

Mentorship will be provided from these organizations to coach and nurture the students as they make their way into the business world.

At a press briefing on Monday, Executive Director of JA Dominica, Natasha Yeeloy-Labad, said in lieu of the global entrepreneurship week it is rather fitting to launch “this interesting collaboration in between the mentors who are involved at the DDA and IDA and the educators who are involved…”

She pointed out that Natural Erase has “fantastic potential.”

She noted that the press briefing presented a perfect opportunity to congratulate the students for their entrepreneurial spirit. “This is an opportunity for one to congratulate the hard work of students and the educators who are committed to bringing a culture of entrepreneurship to our students,” she stated.

Lead mentor at DDA, Gloria Joseph, said although the organization has a hectic schedule, it is taking on what she described as “an awesome responsibility.”

“It is an awesome responsibility for us and we embrace it although we have very busy work schedules,” she said. “We realize that our work experience and the support and guidance we can afford to students will redound to the good of Dominica and the economy in the future, and we see that our partnership with the JA Dominica will help in that venture.”

Joseph also mentioned that “the students can do something now and we can show them that they have within them the potential, the entrepreneurship potential, the creative ability, the know how … they have something within them that lies latent and our job is to stimulate the latent potential into activity”.

One of the students of DGS who is also the Vice President of the student company, Kaihil Charles, noted that although some students may not choose to continue in their entrepreneurship quest, the knowledge learnt will be beneficial.

“I think that the opportunity that JA has provided us is to equip us with new skills that others out there may not have when you go out to get jobs, and even if we do not start a business, Junior Achievement will still be able to help in our different areas of life, and no matter what job we get it will still be useful to us,” he said.

Students will benefit from direct mentoring and access to resources that will equip them with the skills of successfully running and managing a small business.

The School Company, which is made up of the 24 students, is run by a president, five department heads and 18 support staff.