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UWI TODAY
– SUNDAY 4 NOVEMBER, 2018
GRADUATION 2018
“No amount of box drains or watercourses
could have
dealt with the volume of rain that fell last week,” said
Robert Bermudez, UWI Chancellor, referring to recent
devastating floods in T&T and highlighting the reality
of climate change issues for the region and for the
almost 4,000 new graduates seeking a place in this new
world. He was speaking at the first of six graduation
ceremonies at UWI St Augustine Campus onThursday,
October 25. He painted a picture of serious challenges
as well as great opportunities, especially the potential
of technological changes which are transforming the
ways we do business and the ways we live.
On the floods, Bermudez expressed the nation’s
shock at the terrible impacts, with some people
losing homes and most possessions: “We looked on in
horror as our fellow citizens were sitting on rooftops
waiting for relief and others were being rescued from
their homes by boat. We also saw an outpouring of
generosity and goodwill that is a hallmark of our
country.”
He made a rousing call for a shift to renewable
energy projects that would reduce emissions from
sources such as electricity generation and automobiles.
And he urged citizens to reduce and recycle plastic
waste that is destroying our watercourses. “Between
oil spills and plastic waste, we are destroying the
marine environment and the food source that it
supports. We must preserve our environment as it is
this environment that supports us… We cannot say
howmuch we love T&T and at the same time, destroy
its environment.”
On a more upbeat note, the Chancellor spoke of
the impacts of evolving technologies: “Technology is
changing the world. What is impossible today will be
easy tomorrow.” He said the age of technology was
opening doors to people today that did not exist in
the past. The egalitarian nature of technology, he said,
means anyone can access it, regardless of age, race or
religion, making the world population of six billion
people an increasingly shared community: “We must
embrace becoming global citizens.”
Chancellor Robert Bermudez, on the podium, gives the opening address at the graduation ceremony on October 25.
PHOTO: KEYON MITCHELL
Chancellor: ‘Embrace new opportunities’
Bermudez urged new graduates to embrace life
and to be ready to recognize and take hold of any
opportunities that might come their way. Proud
parents, family members and friends listened carefully
to his words as they packed the tiered seating at the
Sports and Education Centre at The UWI to support
their loved ones.
Graduates cameout instyle.Whilemost youngmen
wore spiffy dark conservative suits, the women made
fashion statements from the demure to the audacious,
sporting swirling saris, risqué miniskirts, elegant pants
suits, floating Muslim wear, modern sheath dresses,
stately gowns and lacy white concoctions. A feeling
of relaxed excitement filled the air as the graduates
respectfully listened to their elders and received their
hard-earned credentials.
The total number of graduates at UWI St Augustine
this year numbers 3,805, coming from all the faculties
– Engineering, Food & Agriculture, Humanities &
Education, Gender & Development Studies, Law,
Medical Sciences, Science & Technology, and Social
Sciences.This is according toOctober 26 data from the
Campus Office of Planning & Institutional Research
(COPIR).The term “graduate” here refers to successful
completion of varied levels of study – including
certificates, diplomas, first degrees, graduate diplomas,
master’s degrees and doctorates.
Of the almost 4,000 graduates this year, 2,537
received undergraduate credentials and 1,268 received
graduate credentials. Men accounted for 1,278 of all
graduates, while women graduates numbered 2,525.
For undergraduate studies, Social Sciences was the
largest of all the faculties, producing 749 graduates,
followed by Medical Sciences (458), Science &
Technology (408), Humanities & Education (342),
Engineering (285), Food & Agriculture (211), and
Law (84).
Outside of degrees, 209 people achieved certificates
or diplomas in a range of subjects from coaching to
music to public sector management.
The six graduation ceremonies took place from
Thursday, October 25 to Saturday, October 27,
with two ceremonies a day, and different cultural
performances at each one. On Thursday, the rich
baritone voice of UWI Theatre Arts student Rondell
Mungal lit up the sports centre with a soulful
rendition of the song “Make Them Hear You”, from
the Broadwaymusical Ragtime composed by Stephen
Flaherty.
Performers at other ceremonies included music
student Keishaun Julien who played “Praeludium
and Allegro” by Fritz Kreisler, adapted for tenor
pan; Vidia Nancoo-Harroo who sang Rogers and
Hammerstein’s “Climb Every Mountain”; and Aniya
Carty who sang Jerome Kern’s “All the Things You
Are”.
Saturday morning’s ceremony was tinged with both
sadness and celebration as people remembered the
much-loved calypsonian Winston “Shadow” Bailey,
who was supposed to have been at the ceremony to
accept an Honorary Doctor of Letters award from
The UWI. Shadow’s sudden death on October 23
left many to mourn the passing of a quirky, very
creative and generous-spirited singer whose song
lyrics were often a form of astute, heartfelt social
commentary on issues including social injustice
and poverty. In tribute to his memory, UWI music
graduate KV Charles sang a moving medley of a
few Shadow songs, including Dingolay, which had
some graduates rising from their chairs to dance.
Sharlan Bailey, Shadow’s son, then performed a
song he said his father had been looking forward
to singing at the ceremony – the composition
One Love, a gentle, simple ballad expressing
Shadow’s dream for “peacefulness, happiness and
togetherness.”
(Shereen Ann Ali)
For the full speech of
CHANCELLOR ROBERT BERMUDEZ
please see our online edition.
