As part of Caribbean American Heritage Month this June, the New York City Department of Education is drawing renewed attention to Patricia “Miss Pat” Chin’s profile in its Hidden Voices curriculum series—a resource developed to highlight the lives and legacies of individuals whose contributions are often left out of traditional historical narratives. Miss Pat, co-founder of VP Records, is featured for her influential role in the development and global reach of Jamaican music, from ska and rocksteady to reggae and dancehall.
Her story appears in the Hidden Voices: Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in United States History module, tracing her journey from Kingston, Jamaica—where she and her late husband Vincent Chin founded Randy’s Records and Studio 17—to Queens, New York, where they established VP Records. Through this lens, students explore themes of migration, colonialism, and cultural identity, while connecting Miss Pat’s work to the broader impact of Caribbean communities in the U.S.
By spotlighting Miss Pat’s story this June, the NYC DOE reaffirms the lasting contributions of Caribbean Americans to the city’s cultural fabric. Her journey offers students a rare look at how entrepreneurship, music, and community intersect—and how a woman at the center of it all helped bring Jamaican music to the world.
Read more about the curriculum here.
Check out the feature here.
