ASC faculty say appointment of new deputy is unfair to staff member who has ‘laboured in the vineyard’

The faculty and staff of the Antigua State College (ASC) are speaking out
against what they describe as “wickedness,” following the appointment of a
deputy principal “from the outside.”

According to reports, on Tuesday, May 21, employees of the College were
introduced to the new deputy principal, who is said to have been an English
teacher at a secondary school, with only a tenuous connection to the ASC.

Apparently, the position has been vacant since its former holder, Jacqueline
Richardson, resigned and took up work in Anguilla.

The staff explain that they expected another longstanding employee, Vaulery
Jeffers, the head of a department, to be promoted to deputy principal, since
she had served in that capacity before.

In early 2020, the current principal, Dr. Na-Ajele Williams-Buffonge, was sent
on special leave by the Public Service Commission following a dispute with
former Education Minister Michael Browne.

During her absence, Richardson served as acting principal while Jeffers acted
in the position of deputy. Then when Williams-Buffonge was reinstated in
2022, the two women reverted to their previous posts.

This stint, coupled with her two decades of service to the ASC – where she
took on additional roles, such as organizing graduations – should have put
Jeffers at the head of the line for the deputy principal spot, staff members
argue.

Stating that the person brought in to fill the role is “a neophyte,” one source
says her connection with the institution is extremely limited, as she was asked
to teach a single course in the Teacher Training Department only last summer.
Not only do the sources allege that the new deputy has no administrative
experience, but they say they suspect the appointment was not made through
the Public Service Commission (PSC), either.

The usual process involves applicants being interviewed by the Ministry of
Education, and then a short list being referred to the PSC, as the job is an
established position that must be filled by a civil servant.

However, the sources say they are not aware of the Commission having made
any selection; therefore, the process has not been completed. Accordingly,
they are hoping the Ministry has not made an ultra vires decision.

The sources note that other qualified staff did not apply for the position of
deputy out of deference and respect for Jeffers, who, they say, “has labored in
the vineyard for more than 20 years” and should have been promoted.
As such, the current situation “is wrong and it’s wickedness,” one outraged
person declares.