| |
Unique, vivacious and invincible Family and friends show support for 160 lively UVI graduates
by Lynn Freehill
Virgin Islands Daily News
May 13, 2008
ST. THOMAS - Pride and exuberance permeated the University of the Virgin Islands' Sports and Fitness Center on Monday as the university granted degrees to 160 graduates.
Wildly happy, friends and family waved, screamed, stomped and shook their keys as the class of 2008 was pronounced UVI's newest alumni.
UVI President LaVerne Ragster called the this year's graduates "unique, vivacious and invincible," in keeping with the university's tradition of describing each class with three adjectives to be repeated throughout the ceremony.
"In the faces before me, I see eagerness and a desire to make an impact," Ragster said. "This gives me confidence to say that the class of 2008 will succeed and make valuable contributions to the territory and the world."
Most of the graduates flashed big smiles as Ragster shook their hand and posed for pictures with them onstage, but Kiechelle Williams burst into tears.
As she processed out carrying a bouquet of cheerful Gerbera daisies from her sister, Williams' eyes still watered. "It's been five years of hard work, tears, late-night tears," she said of her bachelor's degree in psychology.
"But it was worth it!" she quickly added.
Willa Fils, who received a bachelor's degree in business administration, stood for a long embrace with her friend Marion Reed, who graduated from UVI last year.
"I've been through so many hurdles I could graduate twice - full-time school, full-time work, full-time motherhood," Fils said. Family and friends such as Reed supported her, and many helped care for her 11-year-old son, she said.
"I told them I was going to do cartwheels down the aisle, and tell security not to stop me," Fils said.
Pleased parents Joseph and Agnes Kline stood near their daughter, Renee Benjamin, after the ceremony as she was congratulated on her bachelor's degree in communications.
"What an accomplishment that took some years, some studying and some financing," Agnes Kline said. "But she made it, and we're so proud."
UVI does not name valedictorians or salutatorians but recognizes the undergraduate and graduate students with the top academic records in their class.
Solange Lloyd, who achieved a 3.91 grade point average while majoring in accounting, saw her undergraduate work in financial terms.
Funding her own education motivated Lloyd to study hard, she said. "When I realized that was my money, an investment I was making, I decided I wanted the greatest return on my investment," she said. "If I didn't have the loan, I don't think I would have had the dedication I did have."
Hard work, mostly in the early morning quiet, enabled Lloyd to excel, she said. At that time of the day, her thoughts could flow freely, she said. She also bought earplugs and used empty UVI classrooms and deep corners of the library to find complete silence and concentration.
For Lloyd, learning was not a matter of cramming for exams, but of understanding concepts to apply them later. "I want to take it and use it wherever I go," she said. "I break it down so I can explain it to someone at the lowest level. It's not like regurgitation for me."
When Lloyd did not understand a concept, she went in to see professors personally, she said. With UVI's small size, "that close rapport really helped," she said. In addition, Lloyd's aunt Ivy - with whom the Anguilla native has lived while attending classes on St. Thomas - was a great cheerleader for her, she said.
Next, Lloyd said, she hopes to pursue a master's degree in management, likely at Barry University in Florida or Argosy University in Chicago. Then - knowing the fundamentals of managing employees well - she aspires to rise in the business world.
The highest grade point average among graduate students was achieved by Debra O'Connor, who earned a 3.96 grade-point average on her way to a master of arts in education degree.
O'Connor also is a computer repair and computer applications teacher at Charlotte Amalie High School. During the last three and a half years, she used careful planning and discipline to balance full-time work with her studies, she said.
"Being a teacher, I had to schedule around work that had to be done for classes," O'Connor said. "I would sit down and work on my courses every evening so it didn't pile up the night before a class. And weekends - a lot of weekends. It's a matter of self-discipline. I'm an extraordinary organizer."
All the extra work already has paid off, O'Connor said. She uses Microsoft Excel to organize classroom data, just as she was taught at UVI. She also has brought applied technology exercises and projects from the university into the high school classroom.
O'Connor, who grew up in West Virginia and Pennsylvania, thanks her parents for being understanding when she could not visit home because she was working on her master's thesis.
She also credited her professors and the entire UVI education program for helping her through. "They have done nothing but be there for me, backing me the whole time," she said. "The whole school has a wonderful program."
In his keynote speech, Thurgood Marshall College Fund president Dwayne Ashley encouraged graduates to be optimistic about their prospects despite the shaky U.S. economy. Companies will always hunt for talented employees who contribute to the bottom line, he said.
Saying that "proper planning prevents poor performance," Ashley offered a series of tips for success in job hunts and the workplace.
Board of trustees chairman Auguste Rimpel Jr., Senate President Usie Richards, Delegate to Congress Donna Christensen and Acting Gov. Claudette Watson-Anderson also spoke at Monday's ceremony.
|
|
