The Jamaica Teachers’ Association (JTA) honoured 144 educators, each with at least 35 years of service, with its prestigious Golden Torch Award.

Speaking during the awards ceremony at AC Hotel by Marriott Kingston, Acting Chief Education Officer in the Ministry of Education, Skills, Youth and Information, Terry Ann Thomas Gayle, commended the recipients for their exceptional dedication to Jamaica’s education system. She thanked the educators for remaining steadfast through periods of technological disruption, economic challenges, the global COVID-19 pandemic, and, most recently, Hurricane Melissa.

“The ministry recognises that long service is not merely a passage of time. It is an accumulation of wisdom, the refinement of craft, the deepening of relationships with students and communities, and the quiet persistence of professionals who have chosen to remain in the classroom when other opportunities may have beckoned,” she said.