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Jocelyn West | July 19th, 2012
Here are a few lessons I've learned about day-to-day life in Dominica: Never underestimate the power of good manners. A simple "Good afternoon!" when walking into a roomful of people makes a world of difference in the way they respond to you.... -
Jocelyn West | June 26th, 2012
Life on the island continues to surpise me with new challenges. In the past week, my usually reliable Macbook Pro slowed down, froze, and then refused to turn back on. I was kindly informed by the tech personnel at Ross University that my hard... -
Jocelyn West | June 19th, 2012
Tough Decisions I believe I have a choice to make to determine the direction of the rest of my project here in Dominica. I've realized that the Dominica Olympic Committee (DOC), as a political body, conducts community-based projects when they... -
Jocelyn West | June 11th, 2012
June 5-8 - My first week at the DOC Tuesday was my introduction to the Dominica Olympic Committee's office. Frederica, my roommate/landlord/auntie-away-from-home, drove me the hour from Picard to Roseau because she teaches summer school... -
Jocelyn West | June 7th, 2012
Day 4 - Monday, June 4 - AKA an almost perfect day Frederica wakes up at 4:45am almost every morning to leave for her workout at 5:00am. I felt pretty lazy rolling out of bed at the late hour of 6:30am. By the time I was done warming up... -
Jocelyn West | June 6th, 2012
I did not realize how much of a challenge my living arrangements and the internet availability in Dominica would pose to my updating the blog. However, from here on out, I will be much more consistent in my posts. In this first story, I...
Olympic Spirit in the Developing World: Dominica P.L.A.Y.S.
Dominica PLAYS stands for Promoting Learning and Achievement in Youth Sports, and it is the title of my summer project in the Commonwealth of Dominica. This island nation of about 70,000 people is part of the Windward Islands in the Caribbean, and it happens to be the place of my birth. With the support of the Royce Sport and Society Fellowship, I am collaborating with the Dominica Olympic Committee to create a first-of-its-kind National Youth Role Model Program. It will utilize the Olympic Values to educate youth athletes to be good role models, but there are a number of challenges involved with this seemingly simple task. Ultimately, the success of this program could mean international notoriety for this small country as it might provide a model that the International Olympic Committee could distribute to other developing nations. I am eager to see the power of sport in promoting youth development in Dominica.
Location
Roseau
Dominica
