Unlike previous years, the University of Guyana will be hosting two Convocation ceremonies this year to reduce the length of the ceremony as some 1,800 students are expected to graduate.
The 51st Convocation at the Turkeyen Campus will be held on November 11, 2017.
In a statement on Monday, the University said for the first time in the history of the university, the certificates, diplomas and degrees will be awarded at two ceremonies. The first ceremony will be for the Faculties of Agriculture and Forestry, Earth and Environmental Sciences, Natural Sciences, and Technology at the National Cultural Center (NCC) at 10:00hrs, while the ceremony for the Faculties of Education and Humanities, Health Sciences, and Social Sciences will be held at the Turkeyen campus, beginning at 16:30hrs.
Some students have expressed concerns with the decision to host two ceremonies instead of one but the Vice-Chancellor of the University, Professor Ivelaw Griffith in Monday’s statement said “our graduating classes have grown tremendously over the years, and having one ceremony has meant having extremely long ceremonies, with some graduates and guests leaving before the ceremonies conclude.”
Quoted in the statement, he added, “Creating two ceremonies allows us to maintain the tradition of having every graduand cross the stage and shake the hand of the Chancellor, and maintain the solemnity of the occasion while reducing the length of the ceremony.”
Additionally, unlike previous years, all students graduating with diplomas will be invited to don academic robes, along with those graduating with Bachelors and Masters degrees.
Another new feature at this year’s Convocations will be the use of ceremonial gonfalons, which are banners, often shield-shaped, that hang from crosspieces on top of poles. These banners are usually carried at the head of the Convocation procession and identify the different Faculties within the
Dr Dhanpaul Narine, Bachelor of Art in History, Class of 1975, will deliver the address at the first ceremony on November 11 at NCC. He is a distinguished educator and journalist based in New York, and is a former lecturer at City University of New York and the London School of Economics from which he secured his doctoral degree.
Ambassador Rudolph Michael Ten-Pow, who studied Modern Languages, will give the keynote at the ceremony on the Turkeyen campus. He is the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Guyana to the United Nations.
At the Berbice campus Convocation, where more than 200 students will graduate on November 18 on the University Square at Tain, the Convocation Address will be delivered by Ms Patricia Bacchus, Class of 2004, Bachelor of Laws. Ms Bacchus, who hails from the Ancient County, is the Chief Executive Officer and Chairperson of the Board of Caribbean Container Inc. (formerly SAPIL). She also serves as the Chairperson of the Board of GO-Invest.
Meanwhile, the Institute of Distance and Continuing Education, the extra-mural arm of the university, is scheduled to hold its graduation ceremonies for its four centers as follows: Georgetown Center on November 25; Linden Center on November 26; Anna Regina Center on December 2 and the New Amsterdam Center on December 9, 2017.
