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June 2015
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Role of the Vice-ChancellorThe Vice-Chancellor is the principal academic and administrative officer of the University. The Vice-Chancellor of The UWI is charged with advancing the University’s academic reputation and global standing, while championing the strategic direction outlined in the strategic plan for the remaining period of the 2012-2017 plan and beyond. The Vice-Chancellor must therefore possess the credibility, vision and intellectual respect needed to interact effectively with the highest levels of government, business, other academic and international organizations and civic society, at the regional and international levels. Pursuant to Statute 5(a) “The Vice-Chancellor shall be ex-officio Chair of the Senate and, save in the case of committees under Statute 10.4 and of excepted Committees, of all committees of the Council and Senate provided that the Vice-Chancellor may appoint any person being a member of the University to be Chair of any such Committee.” Additionally, the Vice-Chancellor by Statute 6 is charged with maintaining and promoting the efficiency and good order of the University for which the Vice-Chancellor shall be responsible to the Council. In concert with Campus principals, he/she provides strategic direction and leadership and helps to position and present the University internationally, nationally and regionally. The Vice-Chancellor also carries out important ceremonial and civic duties including matriculation and degree ceremonies. The Vice-Chancellor chairs University Council meetings and other principal university bodies, and nominates deputies to chair others. He/she works closely with the campuses to ensure a coherent vision across all the constituent parts of the University and across all the constituent parts of the University so that its governance, management and administration are efficient and effective. Tradition of the Installation CeremonyThis ceremony contains elements which are centuries old, based on the tradition of the medieval university such as the gowns, the oath and the mace. The University’s tradition tell us where we have come from and, knowing where we have come from helps to give us a clear idea of where we want to go to next. The installation of a Vice-Chancellor points to a most significant intersection of tradition and renewal in the life of a university.
The installation ceremony is an important rite. It is the formal act of welcoming and including the Vice-Chancellor into the academic rites, which are ceremonial acts prescribed by tradition or sectoral decree, known and practiced in all societies and reflect their beliefs and values. There is significance in this ritual and in particular the meaning of tradition, in the way in which the office of the Vice-Chancellor ‘captures’ its holder, and how the conferment of authority is signified. Previous Vice-Chancellors
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