ROADTOWN Tortola, BVI, April 20th 2011 - At the Government House Reception Hall in Road Town passengers, including Chancellor of the University of the West Indies Sir George Alleyne, were treated to a range of local exhibitions while presentations were also made by UWI graduates Dr. Heskith Vanterpool and Honourable Kedrick Pickering.
Boyd McCleary, CMG, CVO said it was a pleasure to have the former graduates of UWI as guests of the Territory and to acknowledge the importance of academic achievement and the importance of academia and scholarship in the development of the Territory.
“Any community needs to have strong aspirations and those aspirations must include the aspiration to study at the highest level and therefore the University of the West Indies performs a very important function for this community as it does for the communities across the Caribbean.”
Deputy Premier and Minister for Health and Social Development Honourable Dancia Penn, OBE, QC thanked the governor for hosting the cruise members and said the Virgin Islands was delighted to have such a special group here.
The Deputy Premier said attending the UWI at Cave Hill in 1969 was a wonderful, enduring, formative and wonderful experience for her. She noted UWI, over the years, has been a very important institution for the development of the Virgin Islands and proudly added that five of the thirteen members of the House of Assembly are graduates of the esteemed institution.
“And every day I think of and pay tribute to those who went before us and who had the vision to became founding members of the institution.”
Mrs. Penn also urged the UWI Alumni to renew its commitment to the university and to be stronger and better supporters of it than others have been.
Sir George Alleyne noted that UWI was just 60 years old but assured that it would stand for a long time. “I will guarantee that your children and your children’s children will be there to celebrate at some future time, if probably not another cruise, at least another expression of the presence of the University of the West Indies in our midst.”
The cruise and learn adventure began in Puerto Rico and will also visit the islands of St. Thomas, Antigua, St. Lucia and Barbados. Passengers would enjoy a range of unique activities in the various ports, including tailor made tours of cultural and heritage sites, hosted by notable local exhibitors, historians and performers.
Article taken from Virgin Islands News Online
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British Virgin Islands News