St. JOHN’S, Antigua – Four students from Montserrat are among the 2015 graduating class from the University of the West Indies (UWI) Open Campus. Two of them participated in the official ceremony on Saturday, October 10, 2015 held at the St. John’s Pentecostal Church on Antigua and Barbuda.
Kimmora Ward obtained a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Accounting with honours and Julia Lee a BSc Management Studies with honours.
Also graduating were Renee Valechha with a BSc Management Studies with honours and Michael Wilson; a BSc Management Studies with honours
A total of 650 students (534 undergraduates and 116 postgraduates) officially graduated from the Open Campus with degrees, certificates and diplomas in a wide range of subject areas. This year’s presentation of Graduates Ceremony saw over 150 of these graduands from across the Caribbean gathering together in the presence of Heads of State and Government, the Chancellor and Vice-Chancellor, members of the University’s Executive Management, other highly placed University and government officials, as well as family and friends, to receive their formal academic qualifications.
The UWI Open Campus will conferred an Honorary Doctorate on a citizen from The Commonwealth of the Bahamas, Her Excellency Angela Missouri Sherman-Peter.
Currently the CARICOM Permanent Observer to the United Nations, Ambassador Sherman-Peter has an outstanding and distinguished career as a diplomat, provides singular service to The University of the West Indies, and is a respected senior government representative in her country, The Bahamas.
With more than 38 years of experience in diplomacy, public service, international organisations and executive management, her leadership positions have included Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary and Special Envoy; Chef de Cabinet to the President of the 58th session of the United Nations General Assembly; High Commissioner and Consul General – to name just a few. She also served as Assistant Director/Special Adviser in the Political Affairs Division of the
Commonwealth Secretariat in London from 1994 – 1997.
Her Excellency Angela Missouri Sherman-Peter holds a Master’s Degree in International Affairs from Columbia University in New York and a Bachelor of Arts in History (Special Honours) from The University of the West Indies.
Her specialty areas include crime prevention and criminal justice with a focus on international narcotics control and gender affairs. In 2013 she was the recipient of the Pelican Award from The UWI Alumni Association – New York Chapter, in recognition of her outstanding career and accomplishments in diplomacy and public service.
The Valedictorian for this year was Ms Nadesha Edwards, who will be graduating with First Class Honours from the
Open Campus’s BEd Early Childhood Development and Family Studies programme. Edwards is an Elementary School Teacher from Jamaica with over 12 years of experience working with students from diverse nationalities in Jamaica and the Cayman Islands. In addition to teaching, Edwards is also involved in the mentoring and development of young people and is an avid lover of track and field.
Montserrat will observe a special ceremony for the local graduates on the last Wednesday of November.
For more information on The UWI Open Campus 2015 Graduation, please go to www.open.uwi.edu/graduation .
