37 Open Campus Graduands receive scrolls at ceremony

The featured speaker at this year’s UWI Open Campus Recognition of Graduates ceremony deviated from the usual “inspirational speech” and sought to add meaningful value to the lives of graduands.

The ceremony, which was held last Friday at the Methodist Church Hall, saw 37 graduands crossing the stage to collect their scrolls, after years of studying at the institution.

Professor Leonard O’Garro, the featured speaker dispelled any notions of him giving “a soaring speech” as he said he sought to be authentic and original in all aspects of his life.

“The local organisation of this graduation ceremony suggested I give a soaring speech as is customary with events like this. I do not give soaring speeches really. To me, soaring speeches are typically hypothetical and are highly repeated narratives,” he said. “…In addition, I do not want to assume that I’m any more successful than you all are by giving you advice on how to be successful as soaring speeches usually convey.”

Professor Leonard O’Garro, the featured speaker

O’Garro, a plant pathologist added that he would not even be helpful in giving advice on how to write letters of applications for jobs, as he has never applied for a job.

Instead, he used himself as an example to speak on the topic of identity and how persons can use the power of thought to add value to their lives, the lives of others and society on a whole.

The professor, a Vincentian by birth, said that he was grateful for the help he received from family, friends, and other people who extended their good will. And he said that he repays these people through the “highest value of expression of my gratitude” and being an ambassador through his career.

“…The message I want to get across is this, let us help those who help others. Your country too, because it has helped you,” O’Garro said.

He also said like himself, persons should seek to extend themselves beyond the limitations of working in SVG, particularly if there are no opportunities available.

“If in St Vincent and the Grenadines and elsewhere, you are blocked from excelling and there is no light at the end of the tunnel, pack your bags, leave and go somewhere else with better prospects for you. You can still be a good ambassador from where you are. There can be no sense in sacrificing an enjoyable and fulfilling life for enduring misery, underperformance and unfulfilled potential,” the professor told graduands.

La Toya Browne, the valedictorian

And although he said that he would not dole out advice, O’Garro also told graduands that they should not approach what they have learnt in university courses as if it is incapable of being wrong.

“Regarding a simulation of content as education, I am a scientist as you’ve heard, so I seek out evidence based information for my discourse,” he said. “I do not allow conclusions to be made for me either, whenever this task belongs to me. I want to use my own unique way of thinking to process information. When people think for you and in the process, arrive at conclusions, you are locked in their interests and ways of seeing things, possibly to your disadvantage.”

La Toya Browne, the valedictorian at Friday’s ceremony received a Bachelors of Science degree in Youth Development Work with First Class Honours.

In her address, she chronicled the journey that she and her fellow graduands embarked on as students in various distance learning programmes.

She spoke for all her colleagues in saying that they shared the same experiences and had same goals at the beginning of their respective programmes, and they can now say that they achieved that goal.

“The life of an Open Campus students is not a bed of roses as others may think. Yes, we can attend classes online at nights in our pyjamas, while on our beds half asleep, I might add. But like any other institution, we still had deadlines, meetings, exams to study for and on top of that, were even required to conduct empirical research and practicum before we could be awarded our degrees,” she said. Balancing our personal professional and academic lives was no easy task. I speak for all of us when I say that we have had to make endless sacrifices to our social life and time spent with our family and friends.”

Browne added that in the end, perseveranc e was the key that all graduands needed in order to achieve their success.

The valedictorian said that studying at the Open Campus not only provided them with degrees, but important life skills such as time management, empathy, effective communication and patience.

“We can all agree that this institution has allowed us to build networks with persons in different countries, granting us the opportunity to experience the wonders of engaging and learning about different cultures and countries,” Browne said. “This ensured that our experience with the UWI Open Campus was one that we will never be able to forget.”

And she expressed her belief that the UWI Open Campus fosters the true meaning of Caribbean integration.

Browne said that persons often refer to degrees as “that piece of paper” that costs so much money and takes so much time to obtain.

But she said that it provides a path for personal and professional development, upward mobility, better career opportunities and is an investment in the future.

“While university qualifications and degrees are still being trivialised in many societies, I strongly believe that as Vincentian citizens, we have a right to take advantage of every opportunity that will guide us and help us to aid in the development of our country on national, regional and international levels,” the valedictorian said.

Other speakers at the event were Deborah Dalrymple, head of SVG UWI Open Campus site and Dr Francis Severin, the director of Open Campus Country sites.