Ashesi University on Saturday held its 11th graduation ceremony.
The event held in the Cornfield & Archer Courtyard of the university was chaired by Kofi Ampim, Chairman of the Board of Societe General Bank Ghana Limited.
He was also the guest speaker at for the 2015 commencement ceremony.
Other guests present included the Vice President of Ghana, H.E Amissah-Arthur, the Chief of Berekuso, Nana Oteng Korankye II, the Pro Vice Chancellor of the University of Cape Coast, representatives from the University of Mines and Technology and Executive Secretary of the Ghana National Accreditation Board, Mr. Kwame Dattey.
The Provost, Dr. Marcia Grant, in her opening address, read “Letter One” from Rainer Maria Rilke’s Letters to a Young Poet, which emphasized the importance of self-confidence and introspection.
In his address, the Class Speaker, Omar Khadi ’15, promised that the graduating class will be a model of exemplary citizenship.
“We must move from apathy, towards empathy; we must learn to care. Class of 2015, this is what we have been trained for. Let’s show the world how it’s done,” he said.
Ashesi’s President, Patrick Awuah expressed his confidence in the class and encouraged them to see the problems around them as a breakdown of social capital, value that societies gain through collaboration and collective action.
“Class of 2015, I feel very confident that you will take the lessons you learned at Ashesi wherever you go, that you will be a force for good in the world, and that you will be the glue that binds our society together. I feel very confident that you will help rebuild Africa’s Social Capital,” he said.
As part of the ceremony, the class presented a gift of GHs1,250 to Ashesi and three members of the Class of 2015 received the President’s “Scholarship, Leadership and Citizenship” Award, which is the highest award to be given to a student at Ashesi.
Guest Speaker and experienced investment banker Mr. Kofi Ampim, also advised the Class of 2015 to embrace risk, appreciate the storms of life and realise that it was citizens, not the government, that ultimately determined a country’s growth.
The graduation of the class marked a new phase for Ashesi, even as it waits for approval to start the new Engineering Programme in September of 2015.
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By: Selassie A. Amissah Mensah /citifmonline.com/Ghana