For over 13 years, 14 Saint Lucian students have received what many of them describe as a life-changing opportunity: The LUCELEC SPISE Scholarship.
This initiative enables promising students to attend the prestigious Caribbean Science Foundation Student Programme for Innovation in Science and Engineering (SPISE) – a five-week summer programme hosted at the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill campus, in Barbados. SPISE immerses gifted students from across the Caribbean in an intensive STEM curriculum, featuring college-level courses and hands-on experiences.
In observance of National STEM Day, and through collaboration with LUCELEC, St. Lucia Times caught up with seven SPISE alumni to learn more about the impact this high-level STEM exposure had on their lives, the ripple effect of LUCELEC’s early investment, and their aspirations to shape the future through science and technology.
Meet LUCELEC’S SPISE Scholars
For Nehal Wadhwani, LUCELEC’s 2022 SPISE scholar, the programme was where her passion for STEM, particularly engineering, truly took shape.
“Once I got into SPISE, I learned so much more about STEM, especially about building things, and finally my decision to pursue engineering became concrete,” said Nehal.
She credits Dr Sah and Professor Cardinal Warde of the SPISE programme for mentoring her through to the next phase of her academic journey. “They both guided me on how to apply to colleges, get financial aid, and learn about scholarships and opportunities available in the STEM field.”
After SPISE, Nehal studied STEM at Sir Arthur Lewis Community College, captained Saint Lucia’s robotics team in Singapore, won the 2023 Temasek Women in STEM Award, and launched a STEM summer programme in Saint Lucia.
Now a mechanical engineering student at Columbia University, she is focused on her future. “I’m really interested in getting my PhD in medical robotics and helping bring that back home, especially seeing how that can improve our healthcare system.”
Dion Recai, LUCELEC’s 2016 SPISE scholar, said his experience opened doors to international opportunities, including the FIRST Global Robotics Challenge in Mexico City and involvement in a USAID programme introducing robotics to Saint Lucian schools.
“From SALCC, I went to UWI in St Augustine, where I did computer science after realising I enjoyed it more than my initial choice, which was engineering,” Dion said. “Later, through an organisation helping to oversee SPISE, I got an opportunity to do an internship in Austin, Texas, as a software developer.”
Currently completing his Master’s degree at the University of Manchester, Dion is eager to continue his career in software development and AI research. “I just genuinely enjoy the software design process and programming. I’m also interested in AI research… those are the two areas I’m looking at right now,” Dion shared.
Hailey Boriel, LUCELEC’s 2020 SPISE scholar, now a graduate student at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), attributes her academic trajectory to SPISE. “SPISE really helped me solidify what exactly I wanted to do and how exactly I can get there. It played a huge role in where I am today – I wasn’t even going to apply to schools in the US. Me being here at MIT is all attributed to SPISE.”
After earning her undergraduate degree in artificial intelligence, Hailey is pursuing her master’s programme and is also job hunting, hoping to land a role in machine learning or data science.
“One of my goals is to aid in the development of Saint Lucia. I think it would be nice to contribute, maybe through a company, perhaps something in manufacturing, just to help boost Saint Lucia’s economy. That’s a long-term goal of mine.”
Aidan Bousquet, LUCELEC’s 2019 SPISE scholar, who graduated alongside Hailey as part of MIT’s undergraduate class of 2025, describes SPISE as transformative.
Aidan excelled in Pure Mathematics at SALCC, emerging as the top student in the subject for the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE).
He then went on to MIT, earning his Bachelor’s degree in biological engineering, hopeful of one day pursuing research into autoimmune diseases – an interest that developed after health scares in his family at a younger age – or cancer research. “I got the Robert E. McNair Scholarship, which is for Black students who have achieved academic excellence and demonstrated exceptional leadership throughout their time at MIT.”
Aidan recently deferred a Master’s offer and is now exploring career opportunities in his field, while keeping the option of a PhD open. “I also want to be able to understand Saint Lucia’s healthcare sector a lot better, so I can make a meaningful contribution in that area,” he said.
Alannah Bousquet, LUCELEC’s 2023 SPISE scholar and Aidan’s younger sister, says that during the camp, she developed study habits that she still draws from. “Now, I’m in my freshman year at Princeton University, and I still find myself going back, even more so, to SPISE… I keep reminding myself, ‘SPISE felt like this, I can do it again’.”
She’s considering a career in electrical and computer engineering, “…and possibly biomedical technology, looking into perhaps early learning education”.
As she continues to acclimate to Princeton life, Alannah says her main goal is to get through freshman year. Beyond that, Alannah said, “I’ve always been a dreamer about possibilities, and despite the fact that I’m ever closer to zoning in on a career path, I’m still keeping my mind open, like I always have, to the fact that I have other interests as well, and I can see how I can bring them in.”
Marie-Thérèse St Clair, LUCELEC’s 2024 SPISE scholar, is now in her second year at SALCC. She says that after receiving the LUCELEC SPISE scholarship, her perspective on what’s possible has grown.
“Before coming to SPISE, I was considering finance to become a risk analyst,” Marie-Thérèse shared with a chuckle. “One specific course at SPISE, the electronics course – I loved the professor. I got to make one of those electric boards you find in a CPU… I thought it was so fun. That kind of pushed me more towards STEM and helped me realise I want to go into electrical or mechanical engineering.”
Marie-Thérèse hopes to one day pursue electrical or mechanical engineering at the university level. She recently participated in the FIRST Global Robotics Competition in Panama as part of Team Saint Lucia, with LUCELEC’s sponsorship.
Keiriann Breen, LUCELEC’s 2025 SPISE scholar, is currently an Advanced Level, year-two student at the Vieux Fort Comprehensive Secondary School (VFCSS).
Fresh out of SPISE, Keiriann says the experience over the summer continues to shape her academic life:“It helped strengthen my time management skills, improved my motivation levels, and also improved my study techniques.”
With her heart set on becoming an engineer, she hopes to pursue the field at university once she graduates from VFCSS.
Like her fellow scholars, Keiriann spoke openly about the significance of SPISE and the support she received from LUCELEC. She shared, “Just to know that I had LUCELEC behind me as a support and a pillar really powered my SPISE experience. When I was down, I would think, ‘Okay, they’re supporting me even when they did not know me, so I should use that as fuel to stay motivated’.”
