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JULY 2015
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CAMPUS NEWS
UWI COMMUNITY NEWS
FROM THE ST. AUGUSTINE CAMPUS
A Campus Museum of our own
Dr Glenroy Taitt (left) and Shazaad Ali Shah, Chief Laboratory Technician
in the Physics Department, with a science artifact.
October 12, 2015
marks five decades and five
years since the establishment of The University of
the West Indies (UWI) St Augustine Campus. Born
from the Imperial College of Tropical Agriculture,
the renowned regional heart of agricultural
research in the early 20th Century, UWI St
Augustine has grown from its original focus to
becoming a massive, multi-faculty campus. Today
we have become a Commonwealth Caribbean
centre for academic pursuits in agriculture,
engineering and medicine, as well as providers
of education and research in the humanities, law,
the natural sciences, the social sciences and
education.
As employees of the St Augustine Campus,
you are part of a 55-year legacy of higher
education and research that has produced
Caribbean leaders and artists in a host of fields,
helped to shape our regional policies and identity
and placed the Caribbean on the map as a world
contributor in ideas and innovation. Employees,
past and present, have played a vital role in the
development of the campus.
The dream of establishing
a campus
museum at The UWI St Augustine is coming
closer to reality and the Museum Committee
wants you to get involved.
“The principal purpose of the proposed
Campus Museum is to display and celebrate
our rich history,” said Emerita Professor Bridget
Brereton, specialist in Caribbean History.
The plan for a campus museum at St
Augustine goes all the way back to the Imperial
College of Tropical Agriculture (ICTA), the
institution fromwhich the campus was developed.
Early floor plans for the Administration Building
of ICTA included space for a museum. In modern
times, Deputy Principal Rhoda Reddock started
the process of establishing a museum. She was
instrumental in setting up a working Museum
Committee, which reports to her. The committee
is chaired by Dr Glenroy Taitt of the Alma Jordan
Library and Deputy Chair Mike Rutherford, who
runs the Zoology Museum.
Plans for the Campus Museum include a
permanent exhibition illustrating the history of
the campus. Items such as documents, paintings
and photographs, and physical objects (artifacts)
will be the museum’s main features.
The Museum Committee is working hard
to develop a historical collection. With help from
student assistants, inventories have been drawn
up for several departments and units, as well
as a partial listing of works of art owned by the
campus. This work is still ongoing. The committee
is soliciting artifacts and memorabilia owned by
individuals, especially alumni and former staff.
These include items such as old ID cards, hall
menus and sports gear. The committee’s goal is
to digitise as much as possible, creating a bank
of digital images of interesting objects in the
historical collection.
The ultimate aim is to have a building, or
part of one, dedicated to the Campus Museum.
One possibility is to house the museum in an
existing, older structure, perhaps dating from
ICTA days (1922-60). Another option is for the
building of a new, state-of-the-art structure.
Our 55th anniversary commemorative
activities were launched at UWI fete 2015 on
January 18. Throughout the year the campus
will recognise this important anniversary. We ask
Celebrating 55 years at St. Augustine
that all employees use this milestone to reflect
on the values and mission of our campus. And
of course, take part in our anniversary activities.
This anniversary belongs to all of us.
The Museum Committee wants to involve the campus community in its work. If you own interesting things related to the history of St Augustine,
know where such items may be located, or if you just want to help—please contact
or
