According to Mrs. Joan Francis, Museum and Heritage Officer at the University of Technology, It was the award-winning work of the University of the West Indies Professor and historian Veront Satchell, titled Hope, transformed: A Historical Sketch of the Hope Landscape, St. Andrew, Jamaica, 1660-1960 that motivated the declaration of the first two national monuments on the University of Technology Campus. Following that, the seven new monuments designated in 2019 were the result of an initiative that began with Mrs. Francis's thesis for her master's degree in Heritage Studies. It occurred to her that the then-structures have a similar architectural style to that of Lillian's Restaurant, which was declared a National Monument in 2010. 

There is a disconnect between heritage education and the University's student population, according to a vox pop conducted on campus (https://soundcloud.com/daniella-dias-788127589/vox-pop-on-the-national-monuments). The vox-pop emphasizes the significance of heritage education, particularly at the university, because the majority of students are uninformed of the university's history and heritage. A Historic University: Hidden in Plain Sight is a multimedia project that strives to raise awareness, educate, and teach people about the heritage and history of the University that is hidden in plain sight.