Twenty years ago, if anyone had told Miss Kamini Latchman that she would have been a teacher, she would have probably laughed at them. But now, she cannot see herself anywhere except in front of a classroom moulding the minds of our future generation.
Watching stories of young women becoming successful in society has always been a motivation in thoughts, as the mantra ‘Reach for the stars, for the sky is not the limit’ repeatedly vocalizes itself in the mind of Kamini.
Born as a blessing from the union of Nalini and the late Roland Jhaman was their first offspring, a daughter, whom the name ‘Kamini Latchman’ was bestowed.
As a youth from the small village of Soesdyke, Kamini was unfortunate to have the opportunities for upward mobility readily available to her. So ‘spreading her wings’ seemed almost impossible to be achieved. As she grew, she bore witness to her mother, being widowed at a young age, raising three children – a task she described as ‘’not easy’’.
At a glimpse, she recalls her mother making tremendous sacrifices to provide food and an education for her children. During this period, she made a heart-wrenching vow to work hard to ensure that her mother’s sacrifices weren’t recognized as meaningless.
Consequently, Kamini successfully graduated from the Covent Garden Secondary school and was immediately employed with the then ‘Camille’s Institute for Business and Science Studies,’ which is now known as Camille’s Academy Inc.
In retrospect, this private educational institution was established during that same period. On the contrary, teaching was not her original passion because she dreamt of having a place in the corporate world but little did she know that the hidden desire to mould the nation’s children would soon be her calling.
Despite the challenges encountered during the period mentioned above, her enthusiasm to become an educator blossomed beautifully as her first success story birthed with a batch of students who excelled at the then Caribbean Examination Council [CXC] examinations.
This achievement evoked great enthusiasm, and Kamini continued along the path of success.
She posited that her “career continued to grow which provided opportunities for promotions,’’ but it required her to further her studies so as to elevate herself academically.
“I began studies with the Cambridge University where I graduated with an International Advanced Diploma in Effective Business Communication, Marketing, Human Resource Management, and Business Organization and the environment in 2006”, she further stated.
During these years of 2007 to 2012, she further pursued studies in Accounting as well as training in virtues, Literacy, along with certificate courses in Psychology, Professional Counseling, Conflict Resolution, and Suicide Intervention.
This eventually led to a promotion as Administrator when the institution’s second branch opened its door in 2013.
She was now in the capacity to manage the school’s operations, which created no hindrance in self-development as she pursued further courses in Guidance Counseling, Emotional Intelligence, and Self Development through the American University of Peace Studies Inc.
In the limelight of such outstanding accomplishments, she has been awarded ‘teacher of the year’ on many occasions, which holds excellent sentiments in her life as a woman who grew via intrinsic motivation.
She firmly believes that success and happiness in life come with your outlook. However, she painstakingly learnt the real hidden strength of a woman after dealing with a separation between herself and her husband.
Hence, she praises the blessings of her two daughters for creating a reason to continue on this journey called life. With this newfound purpose to reach great heights, she ventured into studies with the Association of Business Executive [ABE] and achieved her L5 Diploma in Business Management and Human Resources.
Outstandingly, she copped the silver award for the ‘Employee of the Year 2020’ at the ‘Biz x’ hosted by Action Coach International in Nashville, Tennessee – an award worth celebrating.
She has recently completed training with TVET in Introduction and Delivery of Competency-Based Education. She is also currently in preparation to pursue her Master’s Degree in Business Administration.
Working with Camille’s Academy over the past 20 years has developed Kamini into a well-rounded individual coupled with the training and coaching received from Action Coach-Guyana – Kamini is definitely a productive daughter of Guyana’s soil.
Kamini was appointed as a Director of Camille’s Academy Inc. in 2020 to serve on the school’s Board of Governors and was also awarded for her dedication and commitment to the growth of the Academy at their annual award ceremony at Princess Ramada Hotel.
Truly an inspiration to the world who views life as having friends and family who can be trusted, having a growth mindset, and always believing that God has a plan that he will ensure proper guidance is given.