For Release Upon Receipt - December 21, 2015
UWI
The fifth principal of The University of the West Indies (The UWI) Cave Hill campus, Professor Eudine Barriteau, was formally inducted on December 12, 2015, during a ceremony presided over by UWI Chancellor Sir George Alleyne. The induction was held at the campus’ Roy Marshall Teaching Complex before a wide cross-section of government, diplomatic and clerical dignitaries, leaders of civil society, Universities colleagues, family, friends and well-wishers from across the Caribbean and beyond.
Dr the Right Honorable Keith Mitchell, Prime Minister of Grenada, who shares the same birthplace as Professor Barriteau, headed the list of dignitaries. Other dignitaries included Chief Justice of Barbados, the Honorable Sir Marston Gibson, Minister of Industry, International Business, Commerce and Small Business Development, the Honorable Donville Inniss, Minister of State in the Ministry of Education, Senator the Honorable Patrick Todd, Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Tourism, Senator Irene Sandiford-Garner, UWI Vice Chancellor Professor Sir Hilary Beckles, UWI Cave Hill Campus Council chair, Dr. Paul Altman and numerous other UWI representatives.
Professor Barriteau took up her current post on May 1, 2015, succeeding Sir Hilary who spent nearly 13 years at the helm of Cave Hill, before moving to the Vice-Chancellery. It is her second role as a UWI principal, having served as Principal at the Open campus for nine months. Prior to her appointment at UWI Open Campus, she served six years as Deputy Principal of Cave Hill from 2008-2014. All told, Professor Barriteau has spent over 30 years at The UWI and has served in various roles including Head of the Institute for Gender and Development Studies, Nita Barrow Unit and Coordinator for Graduate Studies and Research.
Speaking on behalf of the Government of Barbados, Minister Inniss praised Professor Barriteau for her academic work which he noted has not only helped to inform public policy but also to dispense many antiquated views about women.
Sir George observed that Professor Barriteau was “well seized in the intricacies of academia; [and] well versed in the administration” to undertake her new role. “…I would wish that you may be granted the health and strength and the wisdom that you may guide aright the affairs of this campus so that it continues to be a leaven in the dough of Caribbean human development, to the benefit not only of yourself, to the benefit not only of those who work with you but to the benefit to the world on a whole.” he added.
In presenting his successor to the Chancellor, Sir Hilary said, “When the Cave Hill campus reached its 50th anniversary two years ago, its moment of maturity, its tipping point, it had not produced a principal who had emerged from its alumni, who had risen from the ranks home-grown. This alignment of institutional maturity and confidence in self is displayed before us today, not as a phenomenon but as a legitimate celebrated expectation.” He added, “Principal Barriteau has been a long and distinguished scholar with a brilliant career that has been globally recognised…This proven record speaks to her performance with distinction in the engagement with all our external stakeholders …It speaks to a demonstrated dedication to place our students at the core of her consciousness and policy actions.”
Principal of the Open campus Dr. Luz Longsworth, who offered remarks, noted that in her roles as Deputy Principal and Principal, Professor Barriteau “has shown her dedication to the students of the campuses, taking a deeply compassionate and open approach to those with whom she came into contact. “This compassion is often wrapped in a pragmatic and solutions-oriented focus which prompts her colleagues in the Open Campus, whom she led for a brief period, to describe her as straightforward, fair and balanced in her judgements.”
Deputy Principal of the St. Augustine campus, Professor Rhoda Reddock, who brought well wishes on behalf of Principal Clement Sankat and the staff, suggested that Professor Barriteau’s “vast experience, track record as a scholar and work as an advocate” made her ideally suited for her new role.
Offering remarks on behalf of Principal of Mona campus and its staff, Pro Vice-Chancellor for Graduate Studies and Research Professor Dale Webber, lauded Professor Barriteau for her “vision and integrity, dedication and determination” adding that she is caring and compassionate about her staff of whom she defended the rights of all categories.
University Director of the Institute for Gender and Development Professor Verene Shepherd, praised the new principal for her independence and trail-blazing traits. “Clearly, though restricted by certain barriers, some women still manage to blaze their own paths, Professor Shepherd said, You are one such woman: doing so with passion, flair and nuff pizzaz, all the while skillfully balanced on heels that are integral to your style and representation.”
In her response, Professor Barriteau reaffirmed the campus’ commitment to improving Caribbean societies and economies in spite of its current financial challenges. She pledged that Cave Hill would serve as an academic beacon even as it focused on fostering a culture of student centredness, returning the campus to financial solvency, pursuing research to benefit the region and providing the Faculty of Science and Technology with an infrastructural renewal befitting of its 21st century endeavours.
She said: “In spite of the turbulent currents and the current turbulence, the Cave Hill Campus does not and will not represent or tolerate intellectual darkness, isolation or retreat from engagement with the issues confronting our societies and region.
“Our Campus is an indelible and intrinsic part of the educational infrastructure of Barbados and particularly, the Eastern Caribbean. Not only are we here to stay, we are here to offer increasingly vital strategies and solutions in the ongoing improvement of life and societal well-being within Barbadian and Caribbean societies.”
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About The UWI
Since its inception in 1948, The University of the West Indies (UWI) has evolved from a fledgling college in Jamaica with 33 students to a full-fledged, regional University with well over 40,000 students. Today, UWI is the largest, most longstanding higher education provider in the Commonwealth Caribbean, with four campuses in Barbados, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, and the Open Campus. The UWI has faculty and students from more than 40 countries and collaborative links with 160 universities globally; it offers undergraduate and postgraduate degree options in Food & Agriculture, Engineering, Humanities & Education, Law, Medical Sciences, Science and Technology and Social Sciences. UWI’s seven priority focal areas are linked closely to the priorities identified by CARICOM and take into account such over-arching areas of concern to the region as environmental issues, health and wellness, gender equity and the critical importance of innovation. Website: www.uwi.edu
(Please note that the proper name of the university is The University of the West Indies, inclusive of the “The”, hence The UWI.)