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Another young Jamaican has distinguished herself in competition against the rest of the world. Eighteen year-old Shawna-Kay Lester, has emerged one of the international winners in this year's Cable & Wireless Childnet International web development competition for young people. Shawna-Kay is a former student of Immaculate Conception High and the 2003 recipient of the Prime Minister's Award in the field of Journalism.
Shawna-Kay's winning creation-- Breakaway (under development) - topped the "New to the Net" category. This website aims to encourage young people to make the most of educational opportunities and use their education as a springboard for personal and social development. Shawna-Kay has won for herself a share of a grant from a special US$55,000 web development prize fund and an opportunity to attend a week-long Internet Academy to be held in Montego Bay, Jamaica, from March 26 to April 1, 2005. The competition's 'New to the Net' category caters to young people who have limited access to Internet technology but have a new idea for the web. Shawna-Kay is the second successive winner for Jamaica in this competition as last year, Carrie-Ann Gordon of Immaculate Conception High also came out on top in the same category. The competition, open to young web developers (aged 18 and under) is part of the Cable & Wireless Childnet Academy 2005 www.childnetacademy.org. This year's Childnet Academy is being hosted by the C&WJ Foundation, which for the second year running, played a major role in encouraging entries by students locally. The winners, selected by a panel of international judges from a field of 225 entrants, include young people from UK, Nigeria, Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago, Canada and Uzbekistan - all of whom demonstrate that the Internet can be a powerful and inspiring tool when used safely and creatively. During the week-long Academy, specialist web support, leadership training and technical advice will be provided, with winners being given exclusive access to a team of internet experts and mentors drawn from the world of education, business and the public and voluntary sectors. The initiative, run by children's internet charity, Childnet International, in partnership with C&W, aims to recognise the outstanding creativity of children and young people who are developing exciting online projects which bring positive benefit to other young people worldwide. Members of the public can vote for their favourite project at www.childnetacademy.org/winners. The winner will be presented with a special "People's Choice Award" to be announced on March 31. This year Jamaica not only produced another winner, but topped the overall number of entries submitted from a single country. |
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