President’s Profile
President’s Profile
WINSTON I. ADAMS,
MBA, & M.Sc—Finance (Florida International University); B.ChE. (Howard); BSc (UWI)
Executive Chairman & President, University College of the Caribbean (UCC), and its subsidiaries, University College Of The Caribbean Foundation US Inc (UCCF); and Founding Partner, UCC Real Estate Investment Limited.
Winston Adams is a consummate business entrepreneur. In 1987, he was awarded the prestigious USAID Scholarship (Latin American & Caribbean, LAC) to study Chemical Engineering at Howard University, Washington, DC, in the United States. At Howard, he was an active member and officer of Toastmasters International, the Caribbean Student Organization (CSO) and the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AICHE).
Upon his return to Jamaica, he worked with the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica (Petrojam) as a Chemical (Process) Engineer and lectured part-time with the University of Technology (UTECH).
In 1992 he demonstrated significant entrepreneurial skills and business acumen as he boldly pioneered the establishment of the Institute of Management Sciences (IMS), which in just ten years emerged as one of the most successful private higher educational institutions in Jamaica; IMS also achieved international recognition.
Mr. Adams having recognized the importance of a highly trained and qualified work force in Jamaica’s development thrust took the decision to address this need on a national scale. He enhanced tertiary educational opportunities for more Jamaicans in both rural and urban areas, by setting up satellite centres throughout the Island.
Through his leadership, his Organizations successfully established major alliances with several reputable overseas institutions, such as the Florida International University, Penn State University, University of Florida, Howard University and University of London designed to strengthen and accelerate the process of human resource development and training in Jamaica. In 1998, he was nominated by the American Biographical Institute (ABI) for the Distinguished Leadership Award and selected for inclusion in the International Directory of Distinguished Leadership for outstanding service to human resource development.
He created history in 2002 with his successful acquisition, through IMS, of the older and prestigious Institute of Management and Production (IMP) creating the largest privately held higher education conglomerate in Jamaica with a combined annual student population of approximately 5,000.
In 2004, Winston Adams was nominated for the Jamaica Observer Business Leader award for his vision and creativity in establishing “Jamaica’s foremost private higher educational institution”. He is the first and only Business Leader to have been nominated from the Higher Education sector.
Mr. Adams is a member of the Kiwanis Club of North St. Andrew and a member of the Education Committee of the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica, PSOJ. He enjoys reading, research, exercise, football, movies and traveling.
He is married to Geraldine and the couple has two children, Shannon and Trishany.
