New York – Jamaican born engineer and community leader Lesleyann Samuel is celebrating a lifetime of volunteer service with her latest accolade – the Kingston College Old Boys Association USA (KCOBA) Community Award for Leadership and Philanthropy.
The award is one of several handed out annually by the New York Chapter of the Kingston College alumni organization to individuals who have contributed significantly to their communities in the USA. Samuel, an alumna of the Immaculate Conception High School (ICHS) in Jamaica and a former president of the Union of Jamaican Alumni Associations (USA) Inc. (UJAA), was recognized for her contribution to the ICHS Alumnae Association and for her achievements as UJAA President during her eight year tenure from 2014 to 2022.
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Presented at the KCOBA USA Annual Reunion and Awards Gala at Auntun’s in Queens Village, New York in May, the award is the latest in a long line of tributes that have been bestowed on Samuel for her voluntary and philanthropic community efforts, which span nearly four decades.
Born in Kingston, Jamaica to R. Karl and Olga Samuel, Samuel’s passion for community service was ignited at an early age by her aunt, the late Dothlyn Joyce (“Dotty”) Campbell, former head of dance at Jamaica’s Festival Commission (now the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission – JCDC).
According to Samuel, “In addition to her job, my aunt volunteered in a number of organizations and was always helping others. I learnt then that life is more than just our day-to-day jobs. Life is about stepping up to our calling. For me, that means doing what I believe I am supposed to do in the service of others who may need whatever help I may be able to offer.”
Samuel immigrated to the USA at the age of 13 and attended Samuel J. Tilden High School in Brooklyn (now Meyer Levin Junior High School), going on to earn a scholarship to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, an engineering school in upstate New York. She graduated from Rensselaer with her Bachelor of Science Degree in Engineering, which would lead to her becoming one of a small but growing number of black female engineers being hired at major communication and tech companies in the early 1980’s. She landed a position with New Jersey Bell – which later became Bell Atlantic and, ultimately, Verizon. After spending over a decade working with Verizon in Maryland, she returned to the Tri state area with her desire to “give forward” as strong as ever.
“It started with my getting involved with my alma mater Immaculate at first, because I was a part of the fifthgeneration in my family to attend the school. My mom was always involved in the alumnae association, in Jamaica and then in New York, so my sisters and I followed suit. Then by 2012, I was working extensively with UJAA- on the board and really enjoying travelling to Jamaica and making my contribution. So in 2014, I decided to take the next major step and run for UJAA president, following in the footsteps of my sister Karlene who was president before me.”
Karlene encouraged Lesleyann to “step up” and supported her through the entire journey.
According to Samuel, “Most of us are active in our alumni associations because we attended phenomenal schools with phenomenal teachers. By giving forward (I deliberately do not ever use the word giving “back,” because that is not our direction), we demonstrate our patriotism – our love for Jamaica – by helping to ensure that those who come after us have as good or better experiences than ours.”
Her term as UJAA president was extended due to the COVID pandemic and by the time it was over in 2022, the UJAA membership had grown from 32 to over 60 alumni organizations during her presidency – an achievement of which she is especially proud.
With her engineering background, she has also been a major force behind UJAA’s support of robotics in Jamaican schools, and has chaperoned several Jamaican student delegations to international robotics competitions in recent years. Her latest project with her own Immaculate Alumnae Association includes extending the robotics program to Immaculate’s Preparatory school, where they participated in the FIRST® LEGO League Jamaica program in late June.
Samuel finds that the one of the great ironies in her life of service has been the way in which her community volunteer activities have influenced her professionally, rather than the other way around.
“Curiously, my leadership and communication skills were developed through my community efforts and helped me in my engineering career- not the other way round. To both, I bring my commitment to a high standard of performance. I also understand that working with volunteers is very different than working with persons who are being paid to do a job. And I also stay positive, and proceed as if success is inevitable.”
In addition to her latest award from KCOBA, Samuel has been the recipient of numerous others including The Bob Marley One Love Leadership Award from The Stop The Violence Alliance, The Caribbean Life Impact Award, The Founders Award from the ICHS Alumnae Association and the United States House of Representatives Proclamation from Congresswoman Yvette Clarke.
As for the future, Samuel is not yet ready to slow down.
“I would like to obtain my doctorate in Organizational Leadership,” she says, “So I’m currently looking for the right programs for me. I would also like to do more work in Jamaica and am always looking at how to contribute in new ways. But generally, I’m staying open to the possibilities – ready as I’ve always been to step through the doors as they open.”
