Thirteen Graduate On St. Croix In UVI’s Certified Public Managers Program

ST. CROIX — Thirteen students — all government employees — on Wednesday graduated from the University of the Virgin Islands’s Certified Public Manager Program on St. Croix. A similar graduation event occurred the day before in St. Thomas.

Launched in July 2013, the VI-CPM is a collaborative effort between the Division of Personnel (DOP) in the Office of the Governor and the University of the Virgin Islands Institute for Leadership and Organizational Effectiveness (ILOE). The program, managed and delivered by UVI-ILOE on both the St. Croix and St. Thomas campuses, is a nationally accredited, academic and professional development initiative and is produced in partnership with the Government of the US Virgin Islands. 

This cohort, the second, represents government sector managers throughout the territory. VI-CPM classes are held on both UVI campuses over a 12-month period. 

Speaking at yesterday’s event, UVI President Dr. David Hall congratulated the graduates, and urged them to view the milestone not as another certification achieved, but rather an important block in their quest to become better public servants.

“In those early discussions, our notion of why we wanted to do this, was to make an investment in the quality of people who are managing and leading the Government of the Virgin Islands,” Dr. Hall said. “And that is still our mission, ro make sure that we don’t just sit back and complain about what’s wrong with an agency or what’s wrong with the government in general, but that we do something — that we invest in the quality of individuals who are leading and managing the Government of the Virgin Islands. And your participation and completion of this program demonstrates that that is a good investment, and one that we are confident will pay off in the future.”

Graduating from St. Croix yesterday were Florine Audain-Hassell, Legislature of the Virgin Islands, Natalie Bailey, Department of Human Services, Andrea E. Barreiro, Department of Human Services, Desiree Bennett-Felix, Department of Labor, Tresa Civil, Virgin Islands Waste Management Authority, Selma Deterville-DaCosta, Department of Human Services, Laura M. Forbes, Juan F. Luis Hospital, Keverine D. George, Department of Human Services, Sarah Naomi James, Department of Human Services, Debora Nieves-George, Department of Labor, Valcina A. Quashie-Peters, Office of Collective Bargaining, Genevieve Whitaker, Elections System of the Virgin Islands, and Zelda M. Williams, Virgin Islands Housing Authority.

Feature Image. From left to right: Genevieve Whitaker and Valcina A. Quashie-Peters. (Credit Ernice Gilbert, VIC)