This Week We Feature Young Professional Kenisha L. Benjamin
Focused and dedicated to her chosen field is our Young Professional for this week Kenisha L. Benjamin, who even while a student completing her studies is actively gaining knowledge as a budding forensics investigator with an attachment to the Scenes of Crime Unit of the Royal Virgin Islands Police Force.
Our Young Professional was born on the island of Tortola 18 years ago to parents Erma Vanterpool and Ferdinand Benjamin.
Benjamin firstly attended the Althea Scatliffe Primary School and then she went on to the Elmore Stoutt High School and now is attending the H. Lavity Stoutt Community College (HLSCC).
She is currently studying Humanities at the HLSCC. Benjamin believes studying Humanities will give her a better understanding of people, necessary for the job she hopes to make a career out of.
Benjamin shared a little of her experience in school. “In primary school I usually got A’s especially in music and Spanish so overall I would say that I was a B plus student or A minus,” she said.
“In high school I did [rather modestly] in mathematics but as I went up English was my strong subject. I later begin to excel in mathematics in Fifth Form,” she said.
Benjamin said she later was ranked 49 out of 180 students.
She called her first year of college “awesome.” “I don’t think there is anything I could really improve on. I was on the President’s List in my first semester with a grade point average of 3.77. But for this semester I dropped down to the Dean’s List because I got a B minus,” said our Young Professional. Benjamin was however inducted to the Phi Theta Kappa society of the college.
She said that upon completion of her Associate’s Degree she is thinking of moving on to the University of the Virgin Islands in the USVI to study criminal justice. “Because I would like to become a crime scene investigator that specialises in digital forensics, which entails analysing electronic devices for evidence etc.,” she said.
“After my Bachelors I am really hoping to focus on the digital forensics part of it so I will do my Master’s Degree in digital forensics.
Currently at the tender age of 18 and while still at the HLSCC, our Young Professional has already begun to chart a path towards her chosen career by gaining practical knowledge and experience. She currently is attached the Scenes of Crime Unit of the Royal Virgin Islands Police Force and has been there since 2013.
She said that she started there as a Fifth Former in a summer job training programme. “So from then I have been going there continuously offering my services from 2013 until now,” Benjamin said.
“This is something that I want to get into and I feel that when I am around there that I am really doing something good,” said Benjamin.
She notes that she has learn a lot of how to manage crime scenes, forensic examinations and evidence handling.
Asked what would have pointed her in this field of work, our Young Professional said that she followed in the footsteps of her parents, both of whom worked at the police station in varying capacities. “My dad was a police officer and he worked for the Criminal Investigations Department. Jut growing up around the station…it was like my playground so I think that this has a lot to do with my decision,” she said.
She also had some outside influences on her career choice, even though those influences were fictional. “I like watching CSI: Miami so that also played a role in my decision as well,” said Benjamin.
She said that although her career decision was hers to make, her parents encouraged her into the field that she is now preparing to make into lifelong career.
“They pushed me to continue and they would always tell me don’t give up. They really saw that it was something that I wanted to get into so they continued to push me in that direction,” Benjamin said.
One of her inspirations is WNBA player Candace Parker. “She had gotten pregnant in college leading up to the draft and people started to doubt her…they didn’t want her to enter the draft but she kept pushing on and she never gave up and in the end she got drafted,” said Benjamin.
Advice to young people
Benjamin in giving her advice to young people said that they must strive to achieve their goals despite naysayers.
“I would say that there are a lot of individuals out there who are trying to bring you down. They will smile with you and hug you as though everything is ok but behind all of that they are trying to bring you down. So at the end of the day you just have to try to get to the top. Don’t let anybody bring you down. You know your capabilities…you know where you want to go so just stay on that path,” said our Young Professional.
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16 Responses to “This Week We Feature Young Professional Kenisha L. Benjamin”
We all love you, especially Auntie Grace and your cousin Ingrid.
Very good to see that you are chasing after your dream.I am so proud of you . Very happy that your in my life . I thank god for you everyday . You are truly a blessing ! I pray are successful in reaching your goals and that God continues to bless you n and your mom who did a wonderful job raising you.
with love from
alleyesonus
:p