UPDATED: ‘I want to graduate’ - Mother pleads for chance to participate in UWI graduation this weekend

Samantha Buchanan has never graduated from a learning institution despite completing her studies.

She was unable to participate in the exercise after completing her studies at Mount Alvernia High School in St James because her parents could not afford it.

She read for her bachelor’s degree at The University of the West Indies’ (UWI) Western Jamaica Campus, but did not walk across the stage to collect her first degree in 2020. The graduation ceremony was held virtually because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Buchanan, 40, has now completed a masters degree at The UWI, Mona campus, but it appears she will again miss out on a chance to graduate because of what she deems “system issues”.

“I was told that I would not be able to march, but I would still be awarded,” a disappointed Buchanan told THE STAR yesterday.

“My dream is to walk, I don’t care about the degree, I want to walk. I want to go to graduation with my daughters because they see the hard work that I put in, and where I am coming from,” Buchanan, who was on the brink of tears, told THE STAR.

More than 3,500 UWI Mona students are set to graduate in four ceremonies over the next days. The students will be conferred with degrees, diplomas and certificates.

Buchanan, a Lilliput, St James, resident, did a Masters of Science degree in Government. She said walking across the stage to collect her degree would mean the world to her. She said that it took her more than a decade after leaving high school to enroll in a tertiary institution.

“After leaving Mount Alvernia High School, I met Minister Edmund Bartlett and I started to work with the Jamaica Labour Party, and I got a scholarship and went to do my bachelors degree. We didn’t grow up in a family that could afford to send us to university. There were times when we could barely go to school. I am the first person from my immediate family to attend university so that is a big deal for us,” said Buchanan, whose only son died in a motorcycle crash as she was about to write final exams for her first degree.

Several attempts by THE STAR to contact Dr Donovan Stanberry, campus registrar at The UWI, Mona, proved futile up to press time Wednesday night. However, the university, in an emailed response to this newspaper Thursday, said Buchanan is yet to meet the requirements to be granted a master's degree.

"We are aware of the issue with Ms Samantha Buchanan and wish to clarify that the reason for Ms Buchanan’s ineligibility was not due to a 'system issue' as was cited in the article, but rather the requirements for programme completion," the university said.

It added: "As a student-centered institution, The UWI has several mechanisms in place to support student success. We will be happy to further engage with Ms Buchanan to have this matter resolved."

EDITOR'S NOTE: The article has been revised to provide an explanation from The University of the West Indies regarding why Samantha Buchanan will not be allowed to graduate this weekend.