News Releases

UWI St. Augustine Principal Says Change Must Occur

For Release Upon Receipt - March 22, 2022

St. Augustine


ST. AUGUSTINE, Trinidad and Tobago. Tuesday 22 March 2022 – At the March 15th St. Augustine Campus Council meeting of The University of the West Indies (The UWI), the Campus Principal, Professor Brian Copeland, presented his report to the members of Council, staff, students, media and the general public - via live stream. Speaking directly to the theme chosen for The UWI STA 2020/2021 annual report: Future, First Draft, the Principal said, “much of the work that has been done in 2020/2021 and in the previous years, has been directed towards shaping the campus to meet tomorrow’s demands. It is also because the work is not complete - far from it. Future, First Draft is not just about change, but change that MUST occur; a do or die scenario.”

Principal Copeland noted that the current economic and education climate demands a radical shift that is transformative in nature with regard to people, processes, tools, and technology. With regard to tuition, there will be a review of the funding model. He offered gratitude to donors for scholarships and bursaries and opened a call to financial houses and the corporate sector to increase their participation in educating citizens at the highest level; and, even as The UWI Endowment Fund continues to contribute to the pool of Bursaries on offer, asking the Fund to go beyond past initiatives.

The Campus signalled eight focal points for the future which includes closer attention to the mode of delivery, the global market, the funding model, processes, teaching and learning, scholarly output and staff engagement.  Come September, 2022, the campus will use a hybrid mode of programme delivery, with a fit-for-purpose mix of online and face-to-face. While its target market will include a global reach, it will keep a strategic focus on meeting local and regional needs.

Copeland reiterated that “UWI’s intent now, as it has been since its 1948 inception, is to produce graduates who are equipped to meet the challenges of the “next” world, ­ competent in their chosen field, and­ endowed with attributes of the ideal UWI graduate, and a Caribbean citizen who is committed to achieving a sustainable regional economy, ecology and society.”

Further information on the St. Augustine Campus Annual Report 2020/2021 can be found at https://sta.uwi.edu/resources/documents/UWI_AnnualReport_20_21.pdf  and on the interactive website https://sta.uwi.edu/annualreport/report.php.

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About The UWI 

The UWI has been and continues to be a pivotal force in every aspect of Caribbean development; residing at the centre of all efforts to improve the well-being of people across the region. 

From a university college of London in Jamaica with 33 medical students in 1948, The UWI is today an internationally respected, global university with near 50,000 students and five campuses: Mona in Jamaica, St. Augustine in Trinidad and Tobago, Cave Hill in Barbados, Five Islands in Antigua and Barbuda and its Open Campus, and 10 global centres in partnership with universities in North America, Latin America, Asia, Africa and Europe. 

The UWI offers over 800 certificate, diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate degree options in Culture, Creative and Performing Arts, Food and Agriculture, Engineering, Humanities and Education, Law, Medical Sciences, Science and Technology, Social Sciences, and Sport. As the Caribbean’s leading university, it possesses the largest pool of Caribbean intellect and expertise committed to confronting the critical issues of our region and wider world. 

Ranked among the top universities in the world, by the most reputable ranking agency, Times Higher Education, The UWI is the only Caribbean-based university to make the prestigious lists. In 2020, it earned ‘Triple 1st’ rankings—topping the Caribbean; and in the top in the tables for Latin America and the Caribbean, and global Golden Age universities (between 50 and 80 years old).  The UWI is also featured among the top universities on THE’s Impact Rankings for its response to the world’s biggest concerns, outlined in the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including Good Health and Wellbeing; Gender Equality and Climate Action. 

For more, visit 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.)

 

 

 

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