The Learning Shift, Inc., is a non-profit organization based in Barbados, whose founders have decades of experience working in the educational and health sectors in the region.  The organization was created to help remove barriers to quality education for primary school aged children in the Caribbean. The Learning Shift, Inc. aims to provide free and easy access to relevant resources to help primary school students achieve their potential.

 

In a bid to level the playing field for all Caribbean students, our mission at The Learning Shift, Inc. is to provide free high quality educational content through the execution of various innovative and child-centric projects.

 

We envisage the eventual creation of an education ecosystem catering to the first 3 tiers of Bloom’s Taxonomy, viz. Remembering, Understanding and Applying. This ecosystem will help provide the skills and knowledge of core concepts taught to primary school children in the Caribbean, aiming to give them a strong educational foundation as they move forward into the exam years. 


Gillian Hassell

Gillian Hassell  is the Principal Founder of The Learning Shift Inc.  As an experienced entrepreneur and business development professional with a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Computer Engineering and a Master of Science (MSc) focused in Computer Science, Mrs. Hassell brings to the table over 20 years of experience in Software Design, Web Applications, Business Development, Marketing Strategy, and Software Development. Mrs.  Hassell is the Managing Director of two IT companies, Aries Technologies Inc, well-known in the regional educational software development arena for its proprietary Mathematics for 11+ and English for 11+, sold in Barbados and Trinidad, and Retail Caribbean Limited, which implements ERP solutions for businesses in the retail sector across the Caribbean. Mrs. Hassell is also an Adjunct Program Manager at the Caribbean Science Foundation (CSF), with particular interest in their Computer Coding Workshops. Having volunteered with several community youth organizations, she recognized that a lack of access to quality educational resources within certain socio-economic groups prevents young people from reaching their full potential.  She is passionate about helping to bridge that gap.


Sir Trevor Hassell

Sir Trevor Hassell  is a  former Adjunct Professor of Medicine at the University of the West Indies, and Consultant Physician and Cardiologist at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Barbados. Along with his membership in several leading international advisory groups, such as the  World Cancer Research Foundation International Policy Advisory Group and The Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization Advisory Group on Advancing the Noncommunicable Diseases Agenda in the Caribbean, Sir Trevor was until recently Chairman of the Barbados National Chronic Non-Communicable Diseases Commission, and Barbados Special Envoy for Chronic Diseases, and has held top positions within the Caribbean Cardiac Society, the Inter American Heart Foundation and the World Heart Federation. He is presently President of the Healthy Caribbean Coalition, a regional civil society alliance established to contribute to the prevention and control of NCDs. In 2013, Sir Trevor was appointed to the Order of Barbados as a Knight of St. Andrew in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the medical profession.


Professor Cardinal Warde

Professor Cardinal Warde  is a Professor of Electrical Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and is one of the world’s leading experts on materials, devices and systems for optical information processing and displays . He is also an entrepreneur, inventor and author. Professor Warde is the Faculty Director  of the Office of Engineering Outreach Programs at MIT, whose flagship program is a six-week intensive course in science and engineering for gifted underrepresented minority US high-school seniors. Professor Warde actively encourages Caribbean youth to pursue careers in science and engineering and, to this end, serves as  the President of the Caribbean Diaspora for Science, Technology & Innovation (CADSTI), and Interim Executive Director of the Caribbean Science Foundation (CSF).  CADSTI and the CSF are focused on stimulating science and engineering-based entrepreneurship, and assisting with the implementation of STEM education reform to promote more science and technology for the economic development of the Caribbean.  He has also served as scientific advisor to the Governments of Barbados and Belize, holds two honorary doctorates in science: one from the University of the West Indies, Barbados Campus in 2008, and a second from Universidad Carlos III de Madrid in 2009. He has received numerous other honors and awards for his achievements in science and engineering.

Nadia Springer

Nadia Springer  is the Executive Director at The Learning Shift.  Subsequent to graduating with a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Modern Languages and Business Studies (French and Spanish), Mrs. Springer’s dedicated pursuit of a career in Marketing within both local (Trinidad & Tobago) and multi-national companies has allowed for exposure to a range of environments from fast moving consumer goods to banking.   Comfortable working in a fast-paced, dynamic environment, Mrs. Springer has experience working with both junior staff and Senior Executives on a wide range of projects including but not limited to: market research, performance reporting and analysis, website content management, database and marketing information systems creation and maintenance, brand management, innovations and new product development, logistics (regional sourcing), budget forecasting and sales administration.  Mrs. Springer also has just under a decade of experience teaching Kindergarten at an International Baccalaureate School in Dubai, UAE. Her exposure to a curriculum that differs from the traditional Caribbean method, where children are taught how to learn rather than what to learn, encouraging curiosity and a lifelong love of learning, makes her uniquely suited to run the day-to-day operations at The Learning Shift.