Vincentian Kenton X. Chance has been awarded the 2022 Distinguished Taiwan Alumni Award by Ambassador Peter Sha-Li Lan on behalf of Taiwan’s Ministry of Education. This award was dedicated to graduates of the Taiwan University Scholarship Programme.
In 2006, the Government of Taiwan awarded Chance a five-year scholarship to study Mandarin and subsquently a four-year undergraduate degree in Taiwan. In 2011, he graduated from Ming Chuan University with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Journalism and Mass Communication, and obtained a Master of Arts in International Affairs (Global Governance) from the same university the following year, earning first place honours upon both graduations.
Chance was able to complete both degrees in five years, having met the rigorous criteria that allowed students to begin a master’s degree in the final year of their undergraduate studies. This, in effect, means that at one point he was reading for both his undergraduate and master’s degrees at the same time.
He was able to maintain his exceptional academic performance while engaged in a number of extracurricular activities, including reporting for his university’s newspaper, dragon boat racing, playing on his department’s basketball team, and being involved in the Caribbean community in Taiwan, including helping to organise Caribbean Callaloo, an event showcasing Caribbean food and culture.
In 2009, Chance started iWitness News as a requirement for a course for his undergraduate studies and continued to operate the site as a source of news and current affairs information from or concerning St. Vincent and the Grenadines. In June 2012, Chance returned to St. Vincent and the Grenadines and worked briefly at Searchlight newspaper. In February 2013, he began to monitise the iWitness News website, which remains his main source of income, and a source of income for other contributors.
Chance has distinguished himself as a media and communications professional, especially in the field of journalism. iWitness News remains a leading source of news and current affairs about St. Vincent and the Grenadines. The iWitness News Facebook page, with its 140,000 followers, has the largest number of followers of any Facebook page in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Further, Chance’s work in journalism has taken him to many places across the world and he has produced work for a number of regional and international news agencies.
Additionally, Chance has supported the successful application of a number of Vincentians for university scholarships in Taiwan. He is a press freedom advocate and is currently an executive member of the Association of Caribbean MediaWorkers.
Chance said:“I am deeply honoured to have been granted this award by Taiwan’s Ministry of Education. The six years I spent in Taiwan, as well as the three visits I have made on short study tours, have been transformational. This award will help to motivate me to continue to be true to the training that I have received in Taiwan. Vincentian graduates of the Taiwan university scholarship programme distinguish themselves in whatever field they are engaged. This award is also a tribute to them and their various contributions to the development of our country and our regional and global society.”
