Mandeville, Manchester, Jamaica …. [Rhoma Tomlinson/Mark A. Kellner/ANN]
It’s not as improbable as the Jamaican Olympic bobsledding team, but the success of four Northern Caribbean University (NCU) students may well be unique in their own way. The students, who are enrolled in the computer science program of the Seventh-day Adventist-owned institution, bested three other teams from the Caribbean and Central America to advance to the final round of the 2005 Microsoft Corp. “Imagine Cup” competition.
To win, they overcame visa difficulties that kept two students behind, as well as their advisor’s sudden illness, to go on and triumph in the semifinal event. A Microsoft official praised the NCU team as being “very skilled presenters for being students — they did an excellent job.”
The final round will take place in Yokohama, Japan, from July 27 to Aug. 1 and the students will travel there as guests of Microsoft Corp., the world’s largest computer software firm. With teams from nine other regional competitions, the NCU students will aim for the “Imagine Cup” and its top prize of U.S. $25,000. A second place prize of U.S. $15,000 and a $10,000 prize for third place will also be awarded.
According to Microsoft Corp., the Imagine Cup, now in its third year, “is an annual global technology competition designed to provide an outlet for students to explore technological and artistic interests outside the classroom.”
The NCU group comprises Leon Green, George Long, Keron Tooma and Romaine Carter. NCU professor Kenrie Hylton, faculty advisor to the student team, said he could not give details of the actual software as the NCU group is still in competition. However, he said, “Our project by its very nature seeks to break down cultural barriers and move people closer across borders.”
According to Microsoft Corp. academic programs manager Liz Romero, who oversaw the competition, the NCU student project “exemplified” the theme of the event. “It shows an excellent use of our technologies,” she said in a telephone interview. “It also very well represented the use of technology with a particular purpose of breaking these [cultural] barriers.”
A company statement indicated that “over the past three years, there has been tremendous growth in the number of students participating in the Imagine Cup and in the number of countries and universities represented. In 2003, 1,000 students representing 25 countries competed in the Software Design Invitational for prizes totaling $50,000 (U.S.).
Three new invitationals were added for Imagine Cup 2004, which drew more than 10,000 students from over 90 countries competing for total cash prizes of $85,000 (U.S.).”
This is the first time Jamaica has entered the competition, Hylton said. “We would like our department, our students, our university and our country to be recognized as a source of top programmers and software designers,” he added.
The NCU team was one of only three teams from the region to advance to the semifinals, from a starting roster of 22 teams, and they are the only team from the region to move on to the Yokohama event.
Romero wouldn’t predict how the NCU students would do in the final competition, but was lavish in her praise for their effort: “They have an exciting application,” she told ANN. “They’re obviously a team with a lot of things going for them. They have a great idea and we are certainly doing everything we can to allow them to show [it] and maximize their talents and abilities.”
Northern Caribbean University is a multi-disciplinary institution with an enrollment of some 4,500 students. Formerly known as West Indies College, it was upgraded to university status in 1999.
Copyright © 2005 by Adventist News Network.
