Sybil Francis - “The Gentle Giant”
Head of Centre, SWTRC (1962 – 1981)
An icon of The UWI and a stalwart within the field of social work in the Caribbean, Sybil Francis was known as the gentle giant whose contribution to Jamaica and the Region continues to be spoken about.
Born in 1914, Mrs. Francis grew up during a time of considerable social and economic change. She is an alumni of The Wolmer’s High School for Girls, where she was enrolled in 1924. Sybil Francis became one of the first Jamaicans to receive a formal education in Social Work from the London School of Economics, in 1946, after receiving a scholarship from the Colonial Development and Welfare Organization. While in England, she interviewed Jamaicans for her radio programme “Girl About Town.”
On her return to Jamaica Sybil worked for various agencies such as the YWCA and Lands Department; and on committees such as Council of Voluntary Social Services and Jamaica Social Welfare Commission, where, through her work, assisted in building the lives of underserved populations.
In 1962 Mrs Sybil Francis, then a civil servant in the Ministry of Social Welfare, Government of Jamaica, with responsibility for liaising with agencies outside the Ministry, was seconded to “help out” The UWI for one year at the newly handed over Social Welfare Training Centre. The Centre was established to meet the needs of persons working in the broad field of social work, either as professionals or voluntary workers, in recognized agencies who did not have the benefit of professional training in social work.
Sybil Francis, served as Staff Tutor for 19 years from 1962-1981. She died on May 30, 2020 at the age of 106 years.
Geoffrey “Geoff” Brown – “The Activist”
Head of Centre, SWTRC (1981 – 1993)
Mr. Brown left an indelible mark as a Social Worker and Columnist. A Mico University College, University College of the West Indies and Columbia University Alumni, Mr. Brown began his career as a civil servant in outreach programmes during the early 1950’s in Jamaica. His early activities in social work, as a social worker, began in the 1960’s at various agencies in New York City. He also served as an Executive Director of the Big Brothers of Metropolitan Toronto in Canada.
While in Canada, he also acted as a consultant in social welfare policies to the provisional governments of Ontario and Alberta, as well as a Director for the Addiction Research Foundation in Toronto.
Upon his return to Jamaica, he took over as Head of SWTRC in 1981 replacing Sybil Francis. During his tenure Mr. Brown’s commitment to the development of social work and social development training was quite evident. He introduced courses related to clinical counselling for professionals in social work and other related fields and continued to offer seminar series’ that focused on social issues related to women, drug abuse, and teenage pregnancy. He also became involved with the American Field Service (AFS) Intercultural Programmes in Jamaica as Founder and as National Director. Through this programme, both local and overseas, students got the opportunity to experience different cultures which expanded their academic and cultural experience.
Mr. Brown founded the Caribbean Network for Integrated Rural Development (CNIRD) in Trinidad and was a founding board member of the Human Employment and Resource Training (HEART), National Training Agency in Jamaica. He was awarded the Order of Distinction for outstanding contribution to Social and Community Development in 2004, the same year he was appointed honorary consul for Botswana. Mr. Brown retired in 1993 but continued to guest lecture at the Centre. He passed away on September 22, 2008.
Lincoln Williams
Head of Centre, SWTRC (1993 – 2017)
Mr. Williams succeeded Geoffrey Brown in 1993, and during his stewardship of SWTRC he focused on the training of para-professional social workers and youth workers. He also worked with the Jamaican government, the Pan-Commonwealth Youth Office and the CARICOM Secretariat as a Youth Commissioner, to develop youth policies and training programmes for Jamaica and the wider Caribbean.
Prior to his return to Jamaica, however, Mr. Williams gained over thirty years’ experience working with young people in different social settings; as a secondary high school teacher, a youth worker, a youth officer and a senior youth officer in the London Youth Service where he specialized in work with youth of African-Caribbean origin.
With a first degree in Economics and Philosophy from the University of East Anglia, U.K., and a Master’s Degree (Distinction) in Urban Education, from Kings College, University of London, Williams furthered his studies at the University of London and received a Diploma in Youth and Community Work and a postgraduate Certificate in Education (Distinction).
Mr. Williams is an avid golfer who found a way to merge his love of the game and his love for social work together in 2005 with SWTRC hosting the UWI/Jamaica Golf Association (UWI/JGA) golf classic which raised funds annually towards the UWI Foundation’s scholarship fund.
His publications include a book Partial Surrender: Race and Resistance in the Youth Service (Falmer Press, U.K. 1988) and articles and chapters on social and youth work issues including Youth and Society (Commonwealth Youth Programme, 1998), ‘Home Alone’ (Ashgate Publishing Ltd, 2007) and Working With Youth (Oxford University Press, 2010 forthcoming). He was also a co–editor for the Caribbean Journal of Social Work.
Mr. Williams demitted the post of Head of Centre in 2017 but continued to work with The UWI as Director of Consortium of Social Development and Research (CSDR) and Head of the Global Campus Academy of Sports. He retired in 2018.
