Graduands urged not to fight for space at bottom of ladder

The valedictorian of the St Vincent and the Grenadines Community College (SVGCC) for 2016 thinks that too many people are busy fighting for space at the bottom of life’s ladder, when there is a vast amount of room at the top.

Ariena Wilson, delivering the valedictory address at the SVGCC graduation ceremonyat the Victoria Park on Tuesday, June 21, urged her fellow graduands to note: “that before a ladder is climbed, it must be directed up; high expectations, and then, only then, does the ascent up this ladder start. The higher the ladder, the harder the work.”

The petite Wilson graduated as the top student from a group of 724.{{more}}

She was a student of the Division of Nursing Education and on Tuesday was awarded the General Nursing Council Award and the Divisional Award for Excellence.

In a segment of her speech, dubbed “Learning from past experiences,” Wilson stressed that history should be used as the propeller that drives us forward, not an anchor that drowns.

“Oftentimes, we choose to embrace the lovely memories and repress the negative ones. Though this may be comforting in some situations, we must also use those negative memories as stepping stones. Ironically, it’s often from these things that we learn the most and grow in the most unexpected ways,” encouraged Wilson.

The top student said that it is because of these negative encounters that we are forced to face the harsh truths of this life and thicken our skins to continue.

“Experiences undeniably impact us and influence the paths that we decide to travel, but we must never let them distract us from the future that we envisioned for ourselves”, said Wilson.

A number of other students were also recognized for their academic excellence, among them Jonelle Benjamin, who was the top performer in the Division of Teacher Education primary programme; Yvonne Archibald, top performer in the Technical Vocational Education Training (TVET) (Home Economics) Programme and Vonley Richards, top performer TVET (Industrial Arts) Programme. Archibald also received the Teacher Education Divisional Award for Excellence. Rachael Hutchinson received the Division of Technical and Vocational Education Divisional Award for Excellence, while Jodi Porter was awarded the Divisional Award for Excellence in the Division of Arts, Sciences and General Studies.

The ceremony also heard from consultant and founder of the Land and Property Network Jamal Browne who delivered the feature address, director of the SVCC Nigel Scott and deputy director of SVGCC Eula Adams.(LC)