Dame Monica Jessie Dacon ( Sheen, born 4 June 1934) is a

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Saint Vincent and the Grenadines () is an island country in the Caribbean. It is located in the southeast Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, which lie in the West Indies at the southern end of the eastern border of the Caribbean Sea wh ...

former schoolteacher, educator and politician. She is the widow of parliamentarian St. Clair Dacon. She attended The Girls' High School and passed both the Cambridge School Certificate and the Cambridge Higher School Certificate. In 1952 she began teaching at her alma mater and the Boys’ Grammar School. She would return to the Girls' High School eleven years later having taught in two

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...

schools, before returning to St. Vincent to teach at the Bishop's College, Kingstown in 1966. She was acting Principal of Bishop's College for a few months before going back to the Girls' High School where she remained for nearly fifteen years. She continued her studies and gained the St. Vincent Teachers' College Certificate in 1980 and two years later her Bachelor of Education degree from the

University of the West Indies The University of the West Indies (UWI), originally University College of the West Indies, is a public university system established to serve the higher education needs of the residents of 17 English-speaking countries and territories in th ...

. On her return to St. Vincent she moved from secondary education to the tertiary level and became a lecturer at the St. Vincent Teachers' Training College. She was appointed Deputy Governor General in 2001 when Sir

Charles Antrobus Sir Charles James Antrobus (14 May 1933 – 3 June 2002) was the Governor-General of St. Vincent and the Grenadines from 1 June 1996 until his death. Antrobus was a master of the St. George’s Masonic Lodge, and spent most of his working life in ...

was Governor General. She became acting

Governor-General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

St. Vincent and the Grenadines Saint Vincent and the Grenadines () is an island country in the Caribbean. It is located in the southeast Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, which lie in the West Indies at the southern end of the eastern border of the Caribbean Sea wh ...

, after the death of Charles Antrobus and until the appointment of Dr.

Frederick Ballantyne Sir Frederick Nathaniel Ballantyne, GCMG (5 July 1936 – 23 January 2020) was the Governor-General of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines from 2002–2019. A trained cardiologist and former chief medical officer of the country, he was appointed g ...

as Governor General, on June 2, 2002. She was appointed

Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(DBE) in the 2010 Birthday Honours/Overseas and Diplomatic List.

References

1934 births Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire Governors-General of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Living people Saint Vincent and the Grenadines women in politics University of the West Indies alumni Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George 21st-century women politicians {{SaintVincent-politician-stub