Jones sets record straight

Minister of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation, Ronald Jones, is setting the record straight as it relates to speculations about whether or not the American University of Barbados (AUB) is operating legally.

Yesterday, Minister Jones made it clear that the five-year-old School of Medicine is fully registered by the Barbados Accreditation Council and other internationally acclaimed organisations.

He also revealed at a press conference and tour of the Wildey, St. Michael institution that AUB is progressing towards accreditation, having already met the eligibility requirement for institutional accreditation.

The Minister said he has written to both AUB and the Ministry of Finance, “notifying them that they have so far satisfied all that we have asked them to do as they move towards that institutional accreditation”.

He said in a few years, the School of Medicine should be fully accredited, taking into consideration that its first cohort will be graduating in September.

“I think sometimes persons don’t understand what they are talking about and that tend to incite and excite persons to talk things they don’t really know. This AUB, just like all others, first must be registered as tertiary providers of education by the Barbados Accreditation Council, which is the statutory body for the registration,” he said.

“The Barbados Accreditation Council does not accredit medical schools in Barbados. The Government of Barbados, by legislation, has appointed the Caribbean Association for Medicine and other health professionals as the accrediting body for medical institutions here in Barbados. They will work along with the Barbados Accreditation Council to bring that accreditation and that process has started.

Giving AUB his fullest support, Minister Jones noted that the institution’s purchase of the BET Building is a definitive commitment to excellence, making it a sought after medical school in the Caribbean and the world.

“The potential benefits to Barbados are in fact quite good. Not only do we have external persons in Barbados as part of the management and teaching structure of the American University, but we also have Barbadians as part of that management and teaching structure here at AUB.

“So, you should already be seeing the economic benefits. Obviously students rent, students buy food, students are involved in leisure activity; all the various things that any human being can do, has been done by the students here,” Jones said.

Meanwhile, the University’s Associate Dean Dr. Syed Kazmi said the directors of the institution where teaching is done through Structured Integration Methodology and Problem Based Learning using 3D-Animation, are committed to improving the standard of the institution.

“We are looking for like 2 000 students in five years,” Dr. Kazmi said. (AH)