David Lewis holds a Master’s degree in international management from the University of the West Indies’ (UWI) Cave Hill Campus.
As he stood proudly receiving his scroll from campus registrar Gail Carter-Payne on graduation
day recently, the coy smile stealing across his face veiled the deep inner satisfaction of achievement by a man who had failed the Screening Test (now known as the Common Entrance Exam) both times he had attempted it at Holy Innocents School; who saw his application to study at the same UWI twice rejected; and who had resorted to scrubbing floors to make a living immediately after leaving school.
Lewis, now an inspector with the Royal Barbados Police Force, told the Sunday Sun: “You have to make up your mind what you want to do, and then you must have the dedication, you must keep focused. I made up my mind that I wanted to improve myself in the academic aspect and I set myself goals.”
Having failed the Screening Test which would have qualified him for entry to a secondary school, he was forced to remain at Holy Innocents Boys’ School until he reached Class 6.
He was, however, successful at the entrance exam to the Modern High School and was excited when he first walked into the now defunct Roebuck Street school headed by the late Louis Lynch.
But that elation was short-lived. After two weeks of being there, his mother could not afford the term fees of $90. She was a housewife, while his father, a casual labourer, was the sole breadwinner supporting a wife and five children. Lewis was the last child.
With some assistance, he was subsequently allowed to enter Ellerslie School at third form level.
It was an opportunity which the 14-year-old grasped, going through the commercial stream right up to fifth form. He excelled in extra-curricular activities, playing Under-15 cricket, and ended up leaving Ellerslie at age 17 with four “School-Leaving Certificates” but no O Level passes.
“The next day my mother said to me, ‘You are a big man, go and look for work’,” Lewis recalled. “I went hunting for work at the Barbados Packers & Canners (a meat-processing company) and asked for work. I got the job as a porter washing down the floor after work.”
He had moved up to the processing room making the hotdogs and luncheon meat and other products
for the company when the ambition bug bit him, though his mother was not happy when he decided to put in an application to the Royal Barbados Police Force.
Just past age 19, without ‘O’ Levels, he entered the force.
On November 2, Lewis celebrated 30 years as a policeman.
As he talks about his academic success, he also reflects on his policing career, remembering being posted to Oistins Police Station under the supervision of Superintendent Dudley Waldron. His writing skills, manifested in the reports he wrote as part of his job, impressed his boss, who spotted the potential and told him: “You have the ability to go further. You should go and study.”
It was the turning point in Lewis’ life and the only prompting he needed to enrol at the Barbados O’Level Institute, where he gained seven ‘O’ Levels in three sittings.
Not satisfied, he told himself ‘I can go further’, his appetite now whetted by his success. Driven by the thirst for more knowledge and further qualification, he went on to study ‘A’ Level law and accounts, successfully completing both courses.
Such academic success fuelled the desire for a university education and he applied to the UWI.
Lewis remembers: “I applied in 1994. I was turned down. I applied in 1995 again and was turned down again. Then in 1996 I said this can’t be fair to me. I know I did not get all my ‘O’ Levels at one sitting but there still has to be some consideration for me.”
He made representation to university authorities on his own behalf and appealed for consideration to be given to his case, arguing: “It is fellows like me that should be given a chance.”
He was given that chance and began as a part-time student in 1996, taking five years to complete a Bachelor’s degree in management
Pursuing a Master’s in international management was the next step, a decision that would draw heavily on his reserves of endurance.
“Studying and working, I did not take vacation, no study leave, no sick leave,” he said. “I did 12 courses back to back in 11 months.”
He completed what would normally have been a two-year programme, receiving good grades, with his lowest being a B, not failing a single course.
He shakes his head as he remembers the balancing act – struggling to maintain a daily routine of work from 7 a.m., home by 7 p.m., rest until 11 p.m., study to 5 a.m. and an early morning jog and then off to work.
No wonder he took a break before writing his thesis on money laundering in Barbados.
With two degrees under his belt, there is a pause but definitely no stopping for this police officer. He plans to beat some more books and is adamant that leaving the force to move into another profession is out of the question.
“I love policing. I have no regrets at becoming a police officer,” he remarked.
Lewis is the father of a 24-year-old daughter who is studying software engineering in China, while his 22-year-old son is studying in the United States.
He believes he can use the management knowledge gained to the benefit of the Royal Barbados Police Force, particularly with the development of young officers.
“My biggest challenge is supervising young people today who bring a whole new culture to the police force,” says Lewis, who considers himself up to the task.
