“It is a euphoric occasion for the St Augustine Academy and the Faculty of Sport,” states Dr Anand Rampersad, Head of the St Augustine Academy of Sport. Since its establishment in August 2017, the Faculty of Sport celebrated its first ever valedictorian this year, Alexandria Douglas, who represented the faculties of Humanities & Education (FHE) and Sport (FSP) at the Graduation ceremony on October 26. According to the Faculty Dean, Dr Akshai Mansingh, Alexandria represents “one of our outstanding students engaged in activities in and out of the university”.
Graduating with a First Class Honours Bachelor of Science degree in Sport Kinetics, Alexandria thrived during her time on campus and was honoured to become valedictorian and represent her faculty. “We’re small but great! I’m proud to represent my faculty and my family.”
As the newest faculty at UWI, the Faculty of Sport’s relevance is rooted in responsiveness with its mission to “provide high-quality education in sports with emphasis on application via research, and development of sports and athletes of the region to maintain their prominence on the world scene”.
Dean Mansingh says that seven years since its inception, this remains the faculty’s goal.“We’ve produced over 75 sports medicine physicians and sport physiotherapists. This is being supplemented by students pursuing their MPhil and PhD degrees in various aspects of sport, those specialising through MSc degrees in Sport and Sport Business Management, as well as many students pursuing degrees in Sport Coaching, Sport Kinetics, and Sport Sciences. Through multiple grant-aided studies, research on many aspects of sport in the region has been done, often leading to curriculum or policy changes.”
The St Augustine Academy of Sport is devoted to fulfilling the faculty’s mission. About his role as Head, Dr Rampersad says, “I am responsible for ensuring the faculty objective of holistic student development through teaching, research, public engagement, and excellence in athletic performance is achieved.
Additionally, the Academy has a role in positively impacting the national sport ecosystem through research, consultancy, and collaborations with the Ministries of Sport and Community Development, Health, Education, and national sporting organisations.”
These joint efforts are best epitomised by graduates like Alexandria. In her valedictory speech, she encouraged her fellow FHE and FSP graduands to note that “Sport is more than just the Olympic stage; it is the soil of change, where seeds of science, strategy, and innovation grow. It can be the future of a country.” Dean Mansingh, too, shares this hopeful sentiment for the future of sport and the faculty: “Sport is now a multi-billion dollar industry. No one becomes a champion without a support team of specialists in all aspects related to performance, mainly based in science and medicine as well as data analysis in particular. The region punches above its size in sport and must produce the support team as well. This is what the Faculty of Sport aims to provide, and therefore, the future is bright.”
