Keep learning . . . UWI principal tells students university is not only option

The Principal of the University of the West Indies (UWI) Cave Hill Campus Professor Eudine Barriteau today advised students that even if they choose not to pursue a universe degree, engaging in other forms of learning is a must.

Delivering the feature address at The Ellerslie School Annual Speech Day and Prize Giving Ceremony at the Walcott Warner Theatre, Errol Barrow Centre for Creative Imagination, she said all forms of post-secondary education, including technical and vocational, are necessary for an organized society.

Professor Barriteau told the students of her alma mater that continuous education was necessary because the world was changing rapidly, leaving them with no choice but to keep up.

She also advised them that their individual actions were critical to achieving the success and personal happiness they and they parents desire.

“You must bring your best selves into the classrooms, onto the playing fields and into all your social interactions. From very young, you must be committed to working towards standards of excellence, to exercising self-discipline; yes, you have to do your homework all the time,” she said.

Speaking on the topic, Where do you Want to Go and How do You Get There? Barriteau told the students she knew they wanted to be healthy, finish school, and have a successful happy life, and live in a Barbados that reflected a safe, caring society.

Stating that such a safe and caring society includes more efficient and responsive healthcare, the principal commended Minister of Health and Wellness Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Bostic, outgoing Permanent Secretary June Chandler and the hardworking staff of the Ministry for the provision of 24-hour access to healthcare with the opening of the Winston Scott Polyclinic.

“This is a necessary and overdue innovation. The QEH [Queen Elizabeth Hospital] already operates on a 24-hour basis, and we are in the 21st century. Persons who cannot afford to go to a private 24-hour healthcare facility need and deserve access to additional health services,” she said.

The UWI principal commended the awardees for their outstanding performance and achievements.

Delivering the principal’s report, Lieutenant Colonel Errol Brathwaite, who highlighted the school’s academic and other achievements for the past year, said the Speech Day’s theme, Sankofa: Remembering the Past to Protect the Future, was timely since it spoke to society engaging the past and reflecting on what once obtained, particularly in the area of education.

He said the theme further suggested that some investigation should be done of the past in order to better fortify the future for the nation’s children, and for their offspring.

“In this the 53rd year of existence and delivering a quality education to thousands of children, there is perhaps no better time to embrace our theme. Most students attending secondary school today are unaware of the challenges which existed after emancipation in the quest for education,” he noted. (AH)