Dominica’s primary electricity utility, Dominica Electricity Services Ltd. (DOMLEC), has celebrated a major milestone for its flagship community education initiative — 40 years of supporting secondary school students — by awarding four new five-year scholarships to incoming students across the island.
The 2026 scholarship presentation ceremony took place on Thursday, August 27, at DOMLEC’s conference room located within its Engineering, Transmission and Distribution complex in Fond Colé, bringing together company leadership, new recipients and a former beneficiary to mark the occasion. This year’s awardees are four students from the general public of Dominica: Merjhana Guiste, who will enroll at Portsmouth Secondary School; Daville Alexander and Kira Bertrand, both set to attend Dominica Grammar School; and Kaley Fabien, who will pursue studies at Arthur Waldron SDA Academy. In a heartfelt symbolic gesture, Fabien gifted DOMLEC an original piece of artwork illustrating her vision for a renewable energy-powered future for the country.
Unlike one-off education grants, DOMLEC’s scholarship programme provides sustained financial support for up to five years of secondary education, contingent on recipients maintaining solid academic performance, avoiding grade retention and submitting end-of-term report cards each academic year. Each year, scholars must also return their program-provided textbooks in good condition at the close of the school year. The assistance covers core secondary education expenses including textbooks, school supplies, examination fees and daily transportation, easing the financial burden on recipient families.
From its launch four decades ago, the programme has extended support to two groups: children of DOMLEC employees and qualifying students from the wider Dominican community. This year marks a rare cycle where all four available awards went to community candidates outside of the company’s employee network.
Speaking at the award ceremony, DOMLEC Human Resources and Administration Manager Claudia Brumant emphasized that the programme’s 40-year milestone stands as a tangible testament to the utility’s long-term commitment to advancing education in Dominica. Brumant offered words of encouragement to the new students, reminding them that secondary education would bring unforeseen obstacles, and that success depends on consistent dedication and resilience. “The choices we make today create the lives we live tomorrow,” she said. “In the five years of secondary school there will be days when the lessons are difficult, when hours are long and when you face challenges you don’t expect. Those moments call for a new level of dedication, commitment and perseverance.”
DOMLEC Public Relations Officer Ayeola George explained that the programme’s financial support frees up household resources that families can redirect to other areas of child development or toward covering education costs for other siblings. George also highlighted the long-term ripple effect of the initiative, noting that a former beneficiary returned to the ceremony this year to share his journey and inspire the new cohort. “Today we had a past beneficiary return to not just share his experience but inspire a new generation of scholars,” she said. “He advised attendees that he wants to also give back and contribute positively to other youth. This most certainly is an example of the wide-reaching impact of this award.”
That former beneficiary, LynD Letang — the son of a current DOMLEC employee who himself received support through the programme decades ago — echoed that sentiment, sharing that his experience motivated him to pay the opportunity forward by supporting other young Dominicans in their education journeys.