BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, – On Friday, July 14, 2023, nine Senior Level Meteorological Technician (SLMT) students and four students in the Operational Aeronautical Forecasting Course (OAFC) became the latest graduates of the Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology (CIMH) after successfully completing the 18-month SLMT and the two-month OAFC forecasting courses.
Previously known as the Class II Meteorological Technicians course, the SLMT programme for operational forecasters was the first course introduced at the CIMH in 1967 and boasts 158 SLMT graduates from across the region. This year’s 24th SLMT class comprised graduates from Belize, Dominica, Jamaica, Saint Lucia, St. Maarten, and Trinidad and Tobago, and is the first cohort to complete a slightly restructured course.
The course which follows the international standards outlined by the World Meteorological Organization’s (WMO) Basic Instructional Package for Meteorologists (BIP-M) covers an eighteen-month period and now includes an additional four-month asynchronous bridging pre-course.
Introduced in 2011, the CIMH 11th OAFC in just under twelve years has been successful in training university graduates, primarily from the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus’, Bachelor of Science in Meteorology programme, as qualified operational forecasters.
This course produces highly skilled forecasters who are well-versed in theoretical aeronautical and operational procedures, with a focus on practical and operational applications, especially in, aeronautical meteorology, tropical weather analysis, and weather forecasting. OAFC graduates, like the SLMT graduates, are required to meet the recommended competency standards for all Aeronautical Forecasters as set by the WMO and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
Ms. Kathy-Ann Caesar, Head of the Meteorology Section at the CIMH, expressed her enthusiasm for the graduates’ accomplishments, stating, “We are immensely proud of the dedication and hard work displayed by our SLMT and OAFC graduates. They have undergone rigorous training and have emerged as highly skilled and competent professionals in the field of meteorology. We are confident that the successful graduates will make significant contributions to the meteorological services in the Caribbean region and beyond.”
Featured guest speaker Mr. Lyndon. Alves, Specialist Meteorologist at the National Weather Watch Centre, Hydrometeorological Service of Guyana congratulated the graduates and emphasized the important role they will play in enhancing meteorological services and weather forecasting capabilities in the region.
A former graduate of the SLMT programme himself, Mr. Alves advised graduates that “on the (operational) desk, every forecast, advisory, watch, warning or report you do is a reflection of who you are as a person and a professional. Do your best with the available information and resources at the time.”
The ceremony concluded with a presentation of certificates of completion and special prizes to the graduates. Ms. Shemma Joseph of Saint Lucia received the award for top student in the SLMT course and counterpart Mr. Ainsworth Saddler of Jamaica received the prize for the most improved student.
Similarly, Mr. Brandon Miller of Barbados received the award for the top student in the OAFC, and Ms. Trecy Spencer-Lake of Antigua and Barbuda was recognized as the most improved student.
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