It looks as if one of St. Thomas's own has a good shot at winning the Audrey Palmer Memorial Scholarship.
St. Thomas native Linnette Ann Rabsatt has made the short list for the scholarship, established by the Caribbean Tourism Organization in 1988 in memory of Audrey Palmer Hawks, a Grenadian who served as director general of the Caribbean Tourism Association.
The goal of the fund is to inspire young Caribbean citizens to follow Hawk's example of innovation and excellence in tourism marketing and management.
The other Caribbean islands that made the shortlist included Antigua, Bahamas and Jamaica. The winner receives a fully paid one-year scholarship to study tourism at Cornell University – valued at $48,000 – in Ithaca, New York. The winner, who could be announced as early as Thursday, is also offered a six-month internship that provides formal training programs with the CTO and American Express Publishing Company in New York.
Rabsatt is a graduate of the University of the Virgin Islands where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration, concentrating on marketing and finance.
Rabsatt, who is currently employed at Austin Advertising, said the fellowship would fit into her road map for success in the tourism industry.
"Ultimately, I want to be involved in the decision making process," said Rabsatt, who recently returned from Jamaica after completing the personal interview portion of the competition.