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UWI honours sixteen of the Region's
beacons
Cave Hill, May 25, 2009
In its ongoing
campaign to shine light on those who tirelessly
contribute to the growth of the region, The University
of the West Indies (UWI) will confer honorary degrees on
sixteen such worthy individuals during graduation
ceremonies on all the UWI campuses later this year: The
Honourable Dunstan St. Omer, Dr. Peggy Antrobus, Prof
Arnold Rampersad, Angela Cropper, Mr. Christopher Laird,
Mr. Robert B. Riley, Mr. Yesu Persaud, Professor Zelma
Edgell, Sir Lloyd Erskine Sandiford, Mr. Paul Bernard
Altman, Sir Frederick Ballantyne GCMG, Professor Colin A
Palmer, Dr. Anne Walmsley, Honourable Oliver F. Clarke,
Mr. John Maxwell, The Honourable John Issa.
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At the Mona Campus,
The Honourable John Issa will receive a Doctor of
Laws degree. This consultant and entrepreneur is one of
the most influential figures in the Jamaican tourism
industry. A former Senator in the Jamaican Parliament,
he has served as Executive Chairman to Superclubs
International Ltd (which represents the Breezes chain of
hotels) and its subsidiaries and as a director of Grace
Kennedy Ltd. He has been credited with introducing the
concept of all-inclusive hotels in Jamaica, thereby
revolutionising the island’s tourist industry. Issa has
received more than 18 national and industry awards,
including the Order of Jamaica (1998), Tourism Medal of
Excellence (2001), Trail Blazer Award (2005) and the
Lifetime Achievement Award in Travel and Tourism (2007).
The degree DLitt
honoris causa will be awarded to
Mr. John Maxwell,
veteran journalist and environmental activist. Involved
in media since the 1950s, he has lectured at CARIMAC,
UWI, as well as at UTECH, Jamaica. During his six-decade
career, he has published over 1,500 columns and has been
interviewed regularly by local and international media
houses as an expert in his field. He has been an icon in
public education, especially in areas such as
decolonisation, democratic governance and related
topics. Maxwell is a passionate and unstinting advocate
for the protection of beaches and other environmental
causes in Jamaica and throughout the region as well as
for the political liberation of Haiti.
Another recipient
of the Doctor of Laws degree will be the Honourable
Oliver F. Clarke, Chairman and Managing Director of
the Gleaner Company. He is often credited with turning
one of the oldest newspaper publishers in the region
into a very successful media enterprise. He has not only
revitalised Jamaican news media, but he is the
co-founder of the Caribbean Media Corporation which is
now the region’s leading multimedia communication
service. He is also Chairman of the West Indian section
of the Commonwealth Press Union and President of the
Inter- American Press Association. He is the recipient
of Jamaica’s prestigious national honour, the Order of
Jamaica.
For her
achievements as a publisher and cultural historian, the
Honorary DLitt will be conferred on Dr. Anne Walmsley.
Born in Derby, England, she fell in love with Caribbean
culture and has since devoted herself to producing and
disseminating works of West Indian Literature and Visual
Arts. After relocating to Jamaica where she became
intimate with the Caribbean she returned to the UK
determined to make use of her experiences. Though
unsuccessful at first, she eventually became the first
Caribbean publisher for Longmans and was instrumental in
having several Caribbean classics republished. She also
worked as a freelance consultant editor and writer on
African and Caribbean Literature and Education. She is
well known for her documentation of the history of The
Caribbean Artists Movement (CAM). Her deeply rooted
interest in Caribbean culture and her efforts to ensure
its preservation through her extensive documentation in
over 39 publications has certainly merited the UWI’s
recognition. Books by Anne Walmsley:
Guyana Dreaming,
The Sun's Eye: West Indian Writing for Young Readers.
Professor Colin A Palmer will also receive a
DLitt at the Mona Campus. A prolific scholar and
historian, he has produced over 60 publications with
several papers still to be published. Professor Palmer’s
range of scholarly interests is exceptionally wide, thus
he can serve as an expert in several areas including
history and black culture. Aside from his academic
endeavours he has served the region in several community
initiatives through the National Endowment for the
Humanities (NEH). Currently a Dodge Professor at
Princeton University, USA, he remains committed and
loyal to his alma mater, UWI Mona. Books by Colin A.
Palmer:
Encyclopedia Of African American Culture And History:
The Black Experience In The Americas,
Eric Williams and the Making of the Modern Caribbean,
Inward Hunger: The Education of a Prime Minister,
and
Passageways: An Interpretive History Of Black America
At the Cave Hill
Campus,
Sir
Frederick Ballantyne GCMG (Knight Grand Cross),
Governor General of St Vincent and the Grenadines, will
receive an Honorary Doctor of Sciences degree. Sir
Frederick has served in this capacity since September
2nd, 2002, and was knighted in November. He replaced
Monica Dacon who had been interim Governor General after
the death of Sir Charles Antrobus. He has had a long
and distinguished career as a Medical Doctor, Educator
and Administrator. He has also been a successful
entrepreneur in St Vincent and the Grenadines with
several business enterprises, including real estate,
marina operations, pharmaceuticals and the hospitality
industry.
Mr. Paul
Bernard Altman is also expected to be honoured
with an LLD at the Cave Hill Campus. This entrepreneur
has prospered as a leader in tourism development and
heritage conservation in the Caribbean for over 30
years. He currently serves as the Managing Director of
Altman Real Estate, the Caribbean’s leading real estate
agency. An avid support of The UWI, he has devoted his
time and resources in the role of Chairman of the
Barbados Board of Trustees for the Endowment Fund and
has served as a member of the Campus Council. He was
inducted into the Chancellor’s Circle in 2008. For his
evident dedication to his work, he was awarded the
Centennial Honour (2000) and the Gold Crown of Merit in
2007 by the Government of Barbados. Mr. Altman also
serves his community as a Justice of the Peace.
Sir Lloyd Erskine Sandiford will also receive an
LLD at the Cave Hill Campus. This scholar wears several
hats including statesman, author, educator, diplomat and
politician. Having served as the fourth Prime Minister
of Barbados, he has over 32 years of unbroken and
devoted service to Parliament, and holds the record of
the longest serving Minister of Education in Barbados.
He served the University as President of the Guild
(1958) while a student at The UWI and was a member of
numerous University councils. An advocate of tertiary
education, he also held posts as a part-time lecturer
and distinguished fellow, and established The Barbados
Community College and the Samuel Jackman Prescod
Polytechnic. Sir Lloyd is also known for his commitment
to Caribbean integration, as he was heavily involved in
both the formation of the Caribbean Examinations Council
and the Heads of Government Meeting which made the
decision to institute the Caribbean Community and Common
Market (CARICOM).
Professor Zelma Edgell is expected to receive a
DLitt at the Cave Hill Campus. A native of Belize, this
accomplished novelist began her career as a reporter for
the Jamaica Gleaner. Having completed a Masters in
Liberal Studies, she currently serves as an Associate
Professor at Kent State University, Ohio, USA. She has
struggled to advance the position of women in society,
serving as the Director of both the Women’s Bureau in
the Government of Belize, and the Department of Women’s
Affairs. Books by Zee Edgell:
Beka Lamb,
In Times Like These,
Time and the River, and
The Festival of San Joaquin
At the St.
Augustine Campus Graduation Ceremonies,
Mr. Yesu Persaud is to receive an LLD for his
entrepreneurial and philanthropic endeavours,. From
humble beginnings in Guyana, this businessman
transformed Demerara Distillers Ltd into one of the most
modern, technologically advanced distilleries in the
Caribbean. Additionally, he has distinguished himself as
founder and chairman of Demerara Bank Ltd, one of the
first West Indian banks wholly owned and managed by
Guyanese. Aside from his business portfolio, Mr. Persaud
is known for his philanthropic spirit. He founded one of
the largest micro credit facilities in the Commonwealth
Caribbean. He has also established several trusts and
foundations which raise funds for various groups in
need. He has also been an instrumental figure in the
cultural arena, as chairman of the Global Organisation
of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO), Guyana.
The UWI will honour
petroleum industry pioneer, Mr. Robert B. Riley
with an LLD. As Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of
BP Trinidad and Tobago, he has been at the helm of a
company which contributes 25% of the Trinidad and Tobago
Government’s tax revenue. Additionally, he is credited
with pioneering offshore petroleum platforms in Trinidad
and Tobago. Under his leadership, bpTT has doubled its
output from 200 to 400 million barrels of oil equivalent
daily. For his contribution to the economic development
of Trinidad and Tobago, Mr. Riley was awarded the
National Chaconia Gold Medal.
Theatre artist and
poet Mr. Christopher Laird will receive the
honorary D Litt. Mr. Laird has devoted his life to
developing the media, communication and film industries
in Trinidad and Tobago. He was heavily responsible for
the establishment of Banyan, which grew into the first
independent television programme production house in the
southern Caribbean. He has committed himself to
productions which feature local content and themes. His
significant contribution to the audio-visual history of
Trinidad and Tobago is evident and merits this award.
Environmental
activist
Angela Cropper will receive a DLitt from the
University. Ms. Cropper will receive the award for her
outstanding service to Trinidad and Tobago, the region
and the world in relation to issues of the Environment
and Sustainable Development. She has recently been
appointed Assistant Secretary-General and Executive
Director of the United Nations Environment Programme, a
post which will allow her an even larger platform to
disseminate her message of environmental conservation.
She is the founder of the Cropper Foundation, a
non-governmental organisation committed to sustainable
development.
The noted
biographer,
Prof Arnold Rampersad, will receive the DLitt.
Professor Rampersad is a Professor of English and the
Sara Hart Kimball Professor in the Humanities at
Stanford University. Among his many works of biography
and criticism was the two-volume “Life of Langston
Hughes” for which the first volume was a Pulitzer Prize
finalist. His work on W. E. B.
Du Bois is also highly acclaimed. From 1991 to
1996, he held a MacArthur Foundation fellowship. He is
an elected member of the American Academy of Arts and
Sciences and the American Philosophical Society. His
work has been credited with restoring the art of
biography as a form of literary criticism. Books by
Arnold Rampersad:
Jackie Robinson: A Biography,
Ralph
Ellison: A Biography,
The Collected Poems of Langston Hughes,
The Life of Langston Hughes (vol. 1), !902-1941,
The Life of Langston Hughes (Vol II), 1914-1967,
Richard Wright: A Collection of Critical Essays /
The Art and Imagination of W.E.B. Du Bois, and
Slavery and the Literary Imagination.
The UWI Open Campus
graduation ceremony will be held in Saint Lucia on
October 17th. An LLD will be awarded to
Dr. Peggy Antrobus. This dedicated social worker
is well respected for her contributions to society as
well as her support of the feminist ideology. She has
been well recognised worldwide having received numerous
international awards, including the Distinguished
Service Award for the enhancement of women’s role in
Caribbean societies (1990) and the UNIFEM Anniversary
Award for extraordinary commitment to the world’s women
(1995). Dr. Antrobus was also responsible for initiating
the Women and Development Unit (WAND) at the UWI School
of Continuing Studies and the Commonwealth Save the
Children Fund. Her commitment to social work is evident
from her membership on more than 25 advisory boards. Dr.
Antrobus has also distinguished herself as an academic
through her numerous academic publications. Book by
Peggy Antrobus:
The Global Women's Movement: Issues and Strategies for
the New Century.
The man who gave
Saint Lucia its greatest symbol of independence,
The Honourable Dunstan St. Omer will receive a D
Litt. St. Omer was the artist responsible for designing
the National Flag of Saint Lucia in 1967. He is also the
father of the artistic genre known as "Prismism," which
evolved out of his experimentation with the cubist
style. St. Omer also served as editor of the leading
newspaper, The Voice of Saint Lucia, from 1959 to 1962.
His name is
synonymous with art in Saint Lucia, where he is a
cultural hero. He is the recipient of the national
award, the Saint Lucia Cross, and a papal medal from the
Roman Catholic Church for his outstanding church murals.
The UK Telegraph described him as the
“Michelangelo of the Caribbean,” as they showered
praises on his work in the Cathedral Basilica of the
Immaculate Conception in Castries. His Prometheus Mural
is on an external wall of the UWI’s Open Campus Centre.
St. Omer remains revered in Saint Lucia for all he has
done for national identity and the fields of art and
media.
Source:
CaveHill
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post 27 May 2009 |
