Kingston, Jamaica — The Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC), in partnership with the Jamaica Customer Service Association (JaCSA), has announced the winners of the 2026 Customer Service Poetry Competition, celebrating Jamaica’s youth and their perspectives on service excellence.

Held under the theme “Beyond Extraordinary: Service Excellence Leveraging AI, Empathy & Resilience,” the competition challenged participants to explore how technology and human values can work together to deliver exceptional service. Through poetry, the young competitors demonstrated the importance of empathy, perseverance, and national pride in building a culture of service excellence.

At the primary/preparatory level, Mia Farquharson of Mt. Alvernia Preparatory School in St. James won the first-place trophy and a $15,000 cash prize for her poem, “Bit the Tuck Shop Robot.” Ladine Faulkner of Corinaldi Primary School in St. James placed second with “Three to Make It Great.” Keisha Mehabear of Rock Hill Primary School in Kingston and St. Andrew secured third place with “Good Service, Plus AI Tools, Equals Extraordinary.” Both runners-up received certificates of participation.

At the secondary/high school level, Romario Drysdale of Seaforth High School in St. Thomas claimed first place, earning the trophy and a $25,000 cash prize for his poem, “Jamaica’s Digital Heartbeat.” Haley Clarke of York Castle High School in St. Ann placed second with “Beyond Extraordinary.” Ramona Williams, also of Seaforth High School, placed third with “The Human Edge.” Both received certificates of participation.

At the tertiary level, Tyrone Codner of The University of the West Indies, Mona, took the top spot, receiving a trophy and $40,000 cash for his poem, “There Is No Button for Care.” Amoya Vickers of the University of Technology, Jamaica, placed second with “Extra in Extraordinary,” and Hoperenee Hosang of the University of the Commonwealth Caribbean, St. James Campus, placed third with “Serving with Heart, Rising with Resilience.” Both runners-up also received certificates of participation.

Now in its second year, the Customer Service Poetry Competition is one of several initiatives under a five-year Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed between the JCDC and JaCSA in October 2024. The agreement, which may be extended by mutual consent, seeks to promote professionalism, courtesy, and high standards of customer service across Jamaica.

Through the partnership, the JCDC supports efforts to raise awareness about the importance of service excellence and provide students with a creative platform to express their perspectives on customer service. The competition, which has become a highlight of the Jamaica Customer Service Association’s (JaCSA) annual National Customer Service Week (NCSW) activities, gives students an opportunity to share their views on customer service and allows Jamaica to see service excellence through their eyes.

JaCSA Deputy Chairman Richard Rowe said this year’s theme was deliberately chosen to address concerns about the growing use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the service industry and to highlight the importance of maintaining the human element in customer interactions.

“Some persons in the service industry are wondering if AI will rob them of their jobs. We thought it was important to help persons understand that AI is not there to replace them, but to help them become better at what they do in serving others,” Rowe explained.

Rowe also expressed satisfaction with the quality of this year’s entries, commending participants for the research, preparation, and intelligence reflected in their presentations. “We are truly elated with the level of participation this year and the quality of the presentations. You could see the obvious intelligence and the research that went into preparing for their presentations, and believe you me, they delivered very well,” he said.

Reaffirming JaCSA’s commitment to the partnership, Rowe noted that the competition provides opportunities to discover young talent while encouraging participants to embrace service excellence in their everyday lives.

Looking ahead to next year, he said the association hopes to expand the initiative by exploring additional creative disciplines beyond singing and poetry. “We want to use all the creative areas to engage our young people and ensure that they inculcate service excellence into their daily lives,” he said. The winners were officially recognised at an awards presentation ceremony on November 4, 2026, at the JCDC Boardroom in Kingston.

Through initiatives such as the Customer Service Poetry Competition, the JCDC and JaCSA continue to demonstrate how creative expression can promote service excellence, strengthen professional values, and contribute to national development. By engaging young people through the arts, the organisations help shape a generation that understands the importance of combining innovation with empathy to deliver exceptional service.