September 23, 2017.
WESTERN BUREAU:
Uncertain whether his family was dead or alive for a month after the passing of Hurricane Maria, which devastated Dominica in 2017, Malcolm Brewster, medical student at the University of the West Indies, Mona, is again at a crossroads.
This time, the Dominica-born 20-year-old, who earned accolades as a national scholar in a country still recovering in Maria’s aftermath, has been deregistered as a result of mounting tuition fees.
“This is because my government did not pay their sponsored amount for the 2017-2018 academic year, citing Hurricane Maria, which devastated the country that year as the cause of this,” Brewster told The Sunday Gleaner.
His total tuition is US$28,000. A loan he has provides US$5,000, and the government of Dominica is supposed to provide the rest, he said.
“Through an application for a grant, and asking around, I’ve already raised about US$3,000, and there’s an active GoFundMe campaign, which has, so far, raised $2,000,” the second-year medical student said while revealing that although he has been deregistered, the UWI allows him to attend classes and prepare for his exams in the event that he finds the money required to pay his fees.
