Minister with responsibility for Education, the Honourable Evans McNiel Rogers and Manager for The UWI British Overseas Territories, Dr. Phyllis Fleming-Banks were amongst regional Government and University officials and other specially invited guests participating in the annual Council Meeting of The University of the West Indies in Trinidad on 29th April 2016.
The meeting, which was chaired by Chancellor of The UWI Sir George Alleyne, included the review of the annual reports and financial statements of the four Campuses, the appointment of Deans and Senior Managers and the endorsement of the recommendations for the awarding of honorary degrees.
The major highlight was the highly anticipated address by the Vice Chancellor, Professor Sir Hilary Beckles. In his first report to the Council as Vice Chancellor, the eminent economic historian, scholar and advocate called on the entire UWI community to come together to take a leadership role in the Caribbean’s economic and social renewal. “Universities are not built to serve themselves. The UWI was built and sustained in order to serve the people of the Caribbean,” he said. The Vice Chancellor also outlined his “Triple A” Vision to rebuild economic competiveness, achieve economic growth and drive our region out of recession through: Alignment of industry and academia for wealth creating and distribution; expansion of Access to tertiary education and Alertness to global opportunities.
“One Caribbean is more than a slogan,” Sir Hilary told the University Council. “It is the Caribbean’s best chance to survive the major economic, environmental and social challenges threatening the region.” Asserting that the “The UWI is committed to Caribbean integration,” the Vice Chancellor noted that The UWI has also been deepening its links across the region. He highlighted the proposed Colleges of The UWI (CUWI) System that is aimed at connecting The UWI to the Community Colleges in the region and pointed out that this was a vital step toward a more resilient, high-quality tertiary education system that can bring the Caribbean together. The Vice Chancellor also applauded those Community Colleges that are already moving towards becoming Colleges of The UWI and encouraged Governments and the Community Colleges to tap into the experience and opportunities resident in The UWI.
During his presentation which was streamed live, Sir Hilary emphasised the global spread of The UWI, pointing out that the University is currently conducting collaborative research projects with more than 150 universities and partner organisations in 50 countries around the world. Initiatives over the last academic year include the establishment of a UWI-China Institute of Science and Technology, an MOU with Sophia University in Tokyo Japan, to facilitate faculty/student exchanges, joint research and training, the establishment of the UWI-
SUNY Centre for Caribbean Governance, Leadership and Development at the State University of New York, as well as programmes with the University of London, New Brunswick, South Florida and Ghana.
The University Council is the governing body of The UWI and includes Ministers of Education from the contributing territories, as well as representatives from all four Campuses. Minister Rogers also sits on one of the Campus Councils and Dr. Fleming-Banks was appointed to the University Council as a UWI Open Campus Academic Board Representative.
After the meeting, Minister Rogers and Dr. Fleming-Banks were guests of the Trinidad and Tobago Minister of Education at a Cocktail Reception where the Local Patron, His Excellency, President Anthony Carmona formally launched the UWI Global Giving Campaign in Trinidad and Tobago. The UWI Global Giving Week is slated to run from 1-7 August 2016 under the theme “Emancipate. Educate. Donate.” It was officially launched at Mona, Jamaica in April and marks the beginning of an annual tradition to connect with friends and cultivate support to strengthen The UWI’s capacity to drive regional development.
– Press Release
(Published without editing by The Anguillian newspaper.)
