Edwin Leopold Allen (April 17, 1905 – February 19, 1984) was a Jamaican politician, representing the

Jamaica Labour Party The Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) is one of the two major political parties in Jamaica, the other being the People's National Party (PNP). While its name might suggest that it is a social democratic party (as is the case for "Labour" parties in seve ...

(JLP). He served twice as minister of education (1953-1955) and (1962-1972). He was the first and longest-serving minister of education of independent Jamaica.

Early life and education

Allen was born on April 17, 1905, in

St. Andrew Andrew the Apostle ( grc-koi, Ἀνδρέᾱς, Andréās ; la, Andrēās ; , syc, ܐܰܢܕ݁ܪܶܐܘܳܣ, ʾAnd’reʾwās), also called Saint Andrew, was an apostle of Jesus according to the New Testament. He is the brother of Simon Peter ...

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

. He was the son of David Allen and Aneita Celestine Allen (nee Nugent). Allen was educated at Mico College and at the

Institute of Education IOE, UCL's Faculty of Education and Society (IOE) is the education school of University College London (UCL). It specialises in postgraduate study and research in the field of education and is one of UCL's 11 constituent faculties. Prior to m ...

of the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

, where he received a BA in History, Law and Economics, and was awarded a teaching professional certificate.

Teaching career

Allen served as head teacher (1928-1929) at Mt Felix Elementary School in St. Thomas, Chantily Elementary School,

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

(1929-1930) and at Leicesterfield Primary School in Clarendon (1931-1950).

Political career

Allen was first elected to the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

from the Clarendon North Western constituency in the 1950 by-election. In 1953, he was appointed Minister of Education and Social Welfare in the Bustamante-led JLP administration, succeeding L. L. Simmonds. He served in this capacity until 1955, when he was succeeded by

Ivan Lloyd Ivan Stewart Lloyd (June 6, 1903 – August 2, 1993) was a Jamaican medical practitioner and politician, representing the People's National Party (PNP). He served as Jamaica's first Leader of the Opposition from 1944 to 1949, minister of educa ...

of the

People's National Party The People's National Party (PNP) is a Social democracy, social-democratic List of political parties in Jamaica, political party in Jamaica, founded in 1938 by independence campaigner Osmond Theodore Fairclough. It holds 14 of the 63 seats in ...

(PNP). Allen again won the North-West Clarendon seat in the 1955 general election, polling 8,213 votes to the PNP's William Linton, who obtained 7,758 votes. However, he was defeated in the 1959 general election by O. Alphansus Malcolm of the PNP. Allen polled 7,663 vote to Malcolm's 8,125. He went on to serve as Member of the Legislative Council (now

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

) from 1959 to 1962. The JLP won the 1962 general election, and Allen was returned to Parliament from the North-West Clarendon constituency, polling 8,056 votes to Malcolm's 6,644. He was again appointed minister of education, succeeding

, and becoming the first occupant of this position in independent Jamaica. From 1962 to 1972, Allen served as education minister in successive JLP administrations led by Sir Donald Sangster and

Hugh Shearer Hugh Lawson Shearer (18 May 1923 – 15 July 2004) was a Jamaican trade unionist and politician, who served as the 3rd Prime Minister of Jamaica, from 1967 to 1972. Biography Early life Born in Trelawny Parish, Jamaica, near the sugar an ...

. He was succeeded in this position by the PNP's Sir Florizel Glaspole in 1972. Allen won the 1972 general election by a 49 vote majority, polling 4,551 votes to 4,455 for Percival Minott of the PNP. He was defeated at the polls in the 1976 general election by Minott who obtained 6,863 votes to Allen's 6,829 (a 34 vote majority). Allen subsequently defeated Minott in the 1980 general election, polling 8,625 votes to Minott's 5,965. He retired from active political life in December 1983.

Legacy

Allen is credited for his pioneering approach to the development of education in Jamaica as outlined in his December 1966 policy paper titled "A New Deal in Education". During Allen's tenure as Minister of Education, secondary education was expanded to an additional 33,000 students and 108 new primary schools were constructed or started. He is credited with securing funding for the construction of the

Sam Sharpe Teachers College Sam Sharpe Teachers’ College (formerly Granville Teachers’ College) is a college located in Saint James, Jamaica. The Inception of SSTC Sam Sharpe Teacher's College was established in September 1975 from funding received from the World Bank a ...

and, under his watch, tertiary education institutions such as the former

College of Arts, Science and Technology The University of Technology, Jamaica (UTech, Ja.), formerly the College of Arts, Science and Technology, is a public university in Jamaica. History The university was founded as the Jamaica Institute of Technology in 1958. The following ye ...

saw significant expansion.

Honors and awards

* Allen was posthumously awarded Jamaica’s fourth-highest honour, the

Order of Jamaica The Order of Jamaica is the fifth of the six orders in the Jamaican honours system. The Order was established in 1969, and it is considered the equivalent of a knighthood in the British honours system. Membership in the Order can be conferred upon ...

, in 1984. * In 1984, the Frankfield Comprehensive High School in Clarendon was renamed the Edwin Allen High School in his honour

Personal life and death

Allen was first married to Mabel Blanche (née Hector) in 1929. His first wife died in 1979. He then married Edith Monica (née Dale) in 1982. Allen died at the

University Hospital A university hospital is an institution which combines the services of a hospital with the education of medical students and with medical research. These hospitals are typically affiliated with a medical school or university. The following is a l ...

, Kingston, on February 19, 1984, at the age of 78.

References

External links

Edwin Allen Related Documents

National Library of Jamaica The National Library of Jamaica is the national library of Jamaica. It is located at 12 East Street in Kingston, Jamaica. The library provides access to various collection of Jamaican literature, maps, films, newspapers, photographs, and more. ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Edwin 1905 births 1984 deaths People from Saint Andrew Parish, Jamaica Government ministers of Jamaica Education Ministers of Jamaica Jamaica Labour Party politicians Members of the House of Representatives of Jamaica