Dick-Forde is UWI Open campus’ deputy principal

The University of the West Indies (The UWI) Open Campus has appointed Dr Emily Gaynor Dick-Forde as Deputy Principal (Acting) effective August 1, 2021.

Dr Dick-Forde has served in The UWI for over 28 years. She commenced her career as an Accounting Academic at the Cave Hill Campus in 1991 in the Department of Management Studies after attaining a BSc in Accounting from the Cave Hill Campus with First Class Honours and an MPhil in Finance from the University of Cambridge England, on full scholarship from the Cambridge Commonwealth Fellowship.

She also read for her PhD in Accounting (Social and Environmental Accounting) at the University of Dundee Scotland, with full scholarships from the Dundee University International Students’ Scholarship for year one and an Association of Commonwealth Universities Scholarship for the remaining two years. While completing her doctoral dissertation, Dr Dick-

Forde pursued the Certified Management Accounting certification with CMA Canada. This was fully funded by The Society of Management Accountants of Canada as a part of their support for professional development for accounting academics at the Cave Hill Campus. She also earned Fellowship status with CPA Canada in 2014.

Over her 17 years at The UWI Cave Hill Campus, she served as an Acting Head of Department and Deputy Head of Department and led the first self-assessment report for the programme review of the BSc Accounting degree. She also served as Assistant Chief Examiner for CAPE Accounting with the Caribbean Examinations Council and as Deputy Dean Distance and Outreach for three years under the Deanship of Sir Frank Alleyne from 2000-2003.

As a Lecturer in Accounting, Dr Dick-Forde was also given responsibility for oversight of the various distance, outreach and challenge programmes across the OECS, travelling to Antigua, St Lucia and Montserrat on several occasions to support students as they prepared for their examinations. A major accomplishment that Dr Dick-Forde recalls was working alongside Sir Frank Alleyne and Dr Farley Brathwaite as part of a three-person team and undertaking a fact-finding tour in the USA as a key part of research which led to the development of the very successful MSc Project Management degree at the Cave Hill Campus.

Dr Dick-Forde resigned from the Cave Hill Campus at the end of 2007 after she was asked to serve in the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago by then Prime Minister, Patrick Manning. From November 2007 to May 2010, she served as Government Senator and Minister of Planning, Housing and the Environment.

Dr Dick-Forde stated: “After 28 years of service to The UWI, I feel blessed to be invited at this time to support Principal Severin as he serves as Interim Principal at this critical moment for The UWI Open Campus for the academic year 2021/2022.”
She shared the following quote which she believes captures her focus, as she serves the students and staff of the Open Campus and the wider UWI: “Accepting the leadership challenge requires practice, reflection, humility, and commitment to making a difference.” (PR)