Of the seventy nine Saint Lucian youth granted partial scholarships to study at the Illinois Technical Institute – more than half need a student loan. And because these are underprivileged children – they do not have traditional security demanded by banks such as cash or land. As a result the government has been asked to guarantee each student loan thereby ensuring the bank will fund the remaining tuition for these students. The government has not committed to do so and have raised concerns ranging from accreditation of ITI to the accommodation that will be made available to the students.
Dr Carl Mack the very man who bumped heads with the government during his visit here earlier in the month – is also the one who made the scholarships available.