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Photo by Broadmead resident Erroll Hay

Broadmead Welcomes New Residents, Trevor & Fay Sewell

By Dosia Laeyendecker

About Trevor:

Trevor Sewell and his wife, Fay, were both born in Jamaica. They were married there and then moved to the United States. After obtaining a master's degree from Marquette University, in Milwaukee, Trevor earned a Ph.D. in educational psychology. The couple's two children were born in Wisconsin—a son, Duane, and a daughter, Andrea.

In 1973, Trevor accepted a position as a professor at Temple University, and the family moved to Pennsylvania. He served as dean of the College of Education until his retirement in 2007.

At Temple, Trevor initiated a program to send professors to teach at Church Teachers' College in Jamaica, where the students earned Temple degrees. From the inception of the Jamaican Diaspora Movement, he played a key leadership role as chair of the Education Sector, whose action plan was rooted in best practices to transform a low performing school that would also serve as a model across Jamaica. Trevor is a recipient of the Order of Distinction, Jamaica's National Honor.

Trevor's primary research interest throughout his career has been cognitive assessment, focusing on minority children. He presented expert testimony on national testing before the U.S. House Committee on Education and Labor.

Trevor was active in his church in Philadelphia, obtaining grants to establish an afterschool program. He is an avid reader and enjoys playing dominos. What he would really like is to make regular short trips to Jamaica, but for the time being this is something he can only dream about.

About Fay:

Fay Sewell left Jamaica with her husband, Trevor, soon after their wedding 54 years ago. She had earned a bachelor's degree from the University of the West Indies. At the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, she received a master's degree in mathematics.

In 1973 the family, now including a son and a daughter, moved to Philadelphia. Fay returned to school at Temple University for a second master's degree, in statistics. She taught math at Montgomery County Community College, in Pennsylvania, until she retired in 2005.

The Sewells' daughter, Andrea, lives in Chesapeake, VA, where she completed a master's degree in counseling. Their son, Duane, died of cancer in 2011 at the age of 44. He was a beloved head and neck surgeon and member of the faculty of the University of Maryland School of Medicine. Fay's daughter-in-law, Catherine Sewell, herself a physician, and two grandchildren, twin boys, live in Baltimore. The boys are now both in college, at Stanford and the University of Pennsylvania. Catherine convinced Fay and Trevor to move to Baltimore, where they can be close to their family.

Fay has always been active in her church and loved her book club. She plans to look for a church near Broadmead after settling in.

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