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Manning Cup players get academic grants from Digicel
December 15, 2023
The two recipients of the Digicel schoolboy football scholarship grant of $100,000 each, Nickoy Walters of Kingston Technical High and Kishawn Valentine of Haile Selassie High, plan to further themselves academically.
The pair emerged winners of the Digicel essay competition, which tasked selected players recommended by coaches with composing an essay about why they deserved the award.
Digicel's Head of Communications and Corporate Affairs, Elon Parkinson, believes Walters' and Valentine's triumphs continue to show the growth of non-traditional high schools as all-round institutions.
"Nickoy Walters and Kishawn Valentine represent what's good about the ISSA schoolboy football competition. Here, we have two students out of non-traditional high schools based on recommendations from their coaches, who were tasked with writing an essay why they deserve this $100,000 sponsorship.
"These two boys came out on top, and we are super happy with the efforts from the coaches to rally these boys," Parkinson said.
He added that the essay competition was a great insight, as they saw how young athletes value education highly.
"The schoolboy football competition is not all about athletic prowess. It is also about the discipline to know academics are important," Parkinson said.
"When we read through the essays and saw the importance they placed on, not only the sporting prowess but also the academics, it was a really difficult decision because the boys went hard to really impress us, but here we have two much deserving awardees, and we wish them well, not only with their academic pursuits in high school, but beyond," he added.
Walters is looking to further his studies in accounting.
"It means a lot to me. I needed help to better my education because things are very expensive and I can't afford it right now. I just want to thank Digicel. I am in sixth form right now studying Business, and I want to major in Accounts and I appreciate this," Walters said.
Valentine hopes to continue his education overseas.
"Words cannot explain. I hope to get a scholarship overseas, so I can study and help to better my family. I feel good, elated," he beamed.
