"I celebrate myself, and sing myself,
And what I assume you shall assume,
For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you."
Walt Whitman

It is an honour and privilege to have been asked to serve as Principal at a campus that has been part of my life for almost 40 years. I wish to thank all of you who sent me congratulatory messages and best wishes. I was particularly touched by my colleagues from WIGUT. I am also grateful for the congratulatory messages from external stakeholders.

In my interactions with all staff and in my leadership at other levels I intend to ensure transparency, due process, fairness and to operate by the rules and best practices of our University. I also expect to be guided by colleagues, those at the senior management level, Deans, and Directors, and hope to gain advice from our lecturers, administrative, technical and professional staff. With your support, I am confident of a productive and fruitful tenure.

I am also very excited about our sixtieth anniversary celebrations in 2008 which will highlight the iconic individuals, landmark research and outreach activities accomplished over the years by the UWI community This is a time for reflection and also looking ahead. As you may know, our strategic plan focuses on four key areas: Teaching and Learning; Graduate Studies; Research and Innovation; Service to UWI -12 and other underserved communities.

And we are pleased to share with you advancements in each of these areas. In this issue of UWI STAN we focus on the Interpretation programme in the Faculty of Humanities and Education. We continue our focus on our Valedictorians as well as the achievements of current and retired staff and students including Professor Ramkissoon, Dr Pinto Perreira and Ms. Joanne Sewlal among others. Our newly appointed Dean of the Faculty of Medical Sciences shares his Vision with readers and the integral work of units and departments are also highlighted. The visit of Prince Charles was interesting in its timing, as we have age old ties to that family, as our first Chancellor was Princess Alice.

Apart from these key initiatives which will be at the forefront of our agenda, I would also like to share with you six major objectives that have been identified for immediate attention at the St. Augustine Campus:

• Building Internal Capacity (Human, Physical and Financial);
• Developing Effective Teams on Campus;
• Developing supportive, collaborative partnerships with stakeholders ( UWI Centre, other Campuses; Governments, Private Sector and other Tertiary Level Instiutions;)
• Establishing Quality in our plant, processes and output;
• Strengthening the regional character of UWI St Augustine;
• Ensuring that we have a positive impact on the Community we serve through effective communication and the receipt of timely feedback.

Our vision can only be achieved by us working together, for the time is "now" for us to collectively accept the challenge, responsibilities and rewards. I look forward to discussing these issues and others at our upcoming Staff Forum.

In closing on behalf of the St. Augustine campus and the University, I wish to thank Professor Bridget Brereton for her contribution to and leadership of the Campus over the last five months of 2007. I wish her all the best on her sabbatical. I also must recognize PVC Bhoendradatt Tewarie's stewardship of the Campus over the period.

I hope you enjoy this issue and look forward to your feedback.