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Sound Waves — Helping Youth At Risk via Music

A little under 50 participants have completed Life Skills I and II Courses – Productivity Enhancement Training (PET) towards attaining National Certification with the Caribbean Vocational Qualification (CVQ) Programme.

The course, offered by the National Skills Development Centre (NSDC) included focus areas in Stress Management, Team Work, Critical Thinking, Work Ethic and Conflict Resolution, among others. The Life Skills course is one of several in a 12-month training programme; Sound Waves – Transforming Youth at Risk through Music Project being executed by the Cultural Development Foundation (CDF) with support from the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), Saint Lucia Social Development Fund (SSDF), the Department of Local Government, Culture and the Creative Industries as well as the Saint Lucia School of Music (SLSM).

Students getting down to business

During an exercise which marked the end of the Life Skills Course in December, Training Facilitator at the NSDC, Cheryl Loctar highlighted that “students were really embracing” what was a new experience for them. She said: “They are so passionate about music, so what I did was that I incorporated music in the programme. I allowed them opportunities to perform skits to illustrate their learning.”

The presentations taught participants the value of team work, communication, conflict resolution, coping skills as well as self-esteem.

Image: Cheryl Loctar encourages students to use music in programme
Cheryl Loctar encourages students to use music in programme

Special guests included the former Director of the Bordelais Correctional Facility, now Director of Administration at Monroe College; Mr. Gus Small, Mrs. Sydwina Alexander, Human Resource Manager at the Saint Lucia Bureau of Standards, Nurse Patricia Modeste from the Saint Lucia Planned Parenthood Association and Mr Irvin “Ace” Loctar, singer, songwriter and businessman. Guest speakers were presented with a bird feeder as a token of appreciation on behalf of the “Sound Waves Class 2016”, hand crafted by Anthony Cadasse, one of the participants from Anse la Raye.

Image: Sydwina Alexander performs mock interviews with students
Sydwina Alexander performs mock interviews with students

The project recommences following the end of year holiday break on Wednesday February 1 at the Saint Lucia School of Music where students will be tutored in Music Theory, Music Performance Levels 1 & 2 and Recording Engineering.

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