PHSU opening campus in VI is a 'bold step'- Hon Sharie B. de Castro

PARAQUITA BAY, Tortola, VI- Minister for Education, Youth Affairs and Sports, Hon Sharie B. de Castro (AL), has called the decision of Ponce Health Sciences University (PSHU) to open a campus in the Virgin Islands (VI), the first of its kind in the territory, as a “bold step”.

The medical school marked the opening of its campus in the Virgin Islands with the White Coat Ceremony of the school’s first VI cohort on Thursday, July 10, 2025, at the Elieene L. Parsons Auditorium.

The school will operate at the H. Lavity Stoutt Community College (HLSCC) campus in Paraquita Bay, Tortola.

A new chapter in VI history- Hon de Castro

“By bringing this programme to our shores, PHSU has made it possible for you to begin your journey in medicine in a place that now also becomes a part of your professional identity,” Hon de Castro told the 32 student doctors.

She told them the moment carries “even more weight” because they are the school's first cohort here in the VI.

“You are stitching the very first seams of a new chapter in the Virgin Islands’ history. You are not just wearing a coat, you are helping to tailor what medical education, professionalism, and excellence will look like here for generations to come.”