Title sponsor of the Jamaican Mathematical Olympiads, New Fortress Energy Foundation, is applauding The UWI for another successful staging of the 2024 Junior Mathematical Olympiad, held recently at the university’s Mona campus.

Organised by the University of the West Indies’ Department of Mathematics, the Junior Mathematical Olympiad is one of the nation’s two highest academic mathematics competitions held under the banner of the Jamaican Mathematical Olympiads (JMO) annually. The second competition within the tournament is the Senior Mathematical Olympiads for high school students in grades 7-11. The JMO competition aims to identify, elevate and challenge mathematically inspired young students at the primary and high school levels across the island.

For the final round of the junior competition, over 1,100 students representing 94 primary and preparatory schools converged at The UWI to sit a 75-minute exam having successfully advanced from the previous rounds. The finals in the senior competition, held on March 23, also saw a total of 120 students from 19 high schools from various parishes vying for top awards.

“NFE Foundation is thrilled to be supporting the Mathematical Olympiads for the fourth consecutive year. Mathematics is a powerful tool for global competitiveness and success. It helps students make sense of the world and find creative and analytical ways to solve complex and real-life problems that go beyond mathematics. We congratulate The UWI for being the engine behind this competition to develop this all-important subdiscipline of STEM in our future generation as they will one day be the decision makers, problem solvers and influencers of our economy,” commented Verona Carter, VP, New Fortress Energy.

“For us at NFE, we are committed to playing our part in building a sustainable, knowledge-based economy in Jamaica that is fit for the future, and STEM plays a critical role in achieving this goal,” added Carter.

The LNG provider, who has been the title sponsor of the national competitions since 2020, continues to invest heavily in STEM initiatives and youth education in Jamaica, including offering full scholarships to students studying engineering or in a STEM discipline at the UWI, CMU and UTech, partnering with The UWI to offer an introduction to Cryogenics Engineering course to full-time engineering students and providing internship opportunities at its LNG facilities for local tertiary engineering students.

Commenting on the partnership with NFE and the growth of the competition since its inception in 2010, Dr Mahesha Narayana, head of department and senior lecturer in the Department of Mathematics at The UWI said, “We are proud of partnerships with companies like NFE Foundation that continue to help the competition grow each year. On behalf of the JMO committee and the department of mathematics, we want to thank NFE for their support and investment in our youth through STEM education at all levels.”

“Importantly, we are encouraged by the enthusiastic response to the competitions each year by students, teachers and even parents, which is a clear indication that, as a nation, our appetite and appreciation for mathematics is growing. Mathematics is not simply a subject; it is at the core of everything we do in life. The little problems that you solve today help you to develop the traits and skills needed to solve bigger, real-life problems later. That is why mathematics is such an important life skill and The UWI’s Department of Mathematics is happy that through the JMO, more people are appreciating the value of mathematics as an important life skill,” added Dr Narayana.

The awards ceremony for the 2024 Jamaican Mathematical Olympiads (junior and senior competitions) will be held at The UWI Mona on Monday, April 15, as part of Jamaica’s National Mathematics Week, when the outstanding students in the competition and the Mathematics Teacher of the Year will be announced.

Photo caption: Mandeville Primary School celebrates at the end of the finals in the Junior Mathematical Olympiad, held at The UWI Mona campus recently. Also in the photo (left) is Dr Mahesha Narayana, Head of Department and Senior Lecturer in the Department of Mathematics at The UWI.

Faculty of Science and Technology on Instagram @uwimona_fst and on Facebook at The Faculty of Science and Technology, The UWI Mona. For inquiries, WhatsApp us at 1-876-552-4691, call us at 1-876-927-1660-9, or email us at fst@uwimona.edu.jm.