The UWI Open Campus to Hosts 2022 Annual Council Meeting Virtually

Office of the Pro Vice-Chancellor and Principal. Monday 14, 2022 ― The University of the West Indies (The UWI) Open Campus will host its 2022 Annual Council Meeting virtually on Friday, March 18, 2022, at 10:00 am Eastern Caribbean Time. This is the third consecutive year that this meeting will be held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ambassador Dr the Honourable June Soomer, Chairman of The UWI Open Campus Council will preside over the meeting. Vice-Chancellor of The University of the West Indies, Professor Sir Hilary Beckles and Interim Principal of The UWI Open Campus, Dr Francis Severin and the Deputy Principal (ag.), Dr Emily Dick-Forde will address the public session of the meeting.

Representatives of ministries of education from across the region, The University of the West Indies, UWI Alumni and Guild of Students are expected to attend the Annual Council meeting via online platforms. The open session will be accessible to specially invited guests, the public and the regional media, and will be broadcast live on UWItv and on the Open Campus Facebook and YouTube channels.

The main presentation will be the Principal’s Report, which will look at the Open Campus’ stewardship for the 2020/2021 Academic Year. This year’s Annual Report will be centred on the theme Repurposing for a Global Future. Dr Severin will highlight the accomplishments of the Campus in the areas of strategic partnerships; verifiable credentials; UWI’s response to the La Soufriere Volcanic eruption in St Vincent and the Grenadines; Launch of the Campus’ Culture Stewards; the Eon Reality Project; and the Campus’ continued response to COVID-19 pandemic.

The meeting will also receive and discuss the Audited Financial Statements, the Audit Committee Report, Student Guild Statement, and The UWI Open Campus Alumni Report. The meeting will also discuss the challenges faced by the Campus and the upcoming opportunities for resource mobilization.

Following the public session of the meeting, the Campus will host a press conference in which the media will be invited to attend and participate.

Ambassador Dr the Honourable June Soomer, Chairman of Open Campus Council
Professor Sir Hilary Beckles, Vice-Chancellor of The University of the West Indies
Dr Francis Severin, Interim Principal of The UWI Open Campus

About The University of the West Indies

The UWI has been and continues to be a pivotal force in every aspect of Caribbean development; residing at the centre of all efforts to improve the well-being of people across the region.

From a university college of London in Jamaica with 33 medical students in 1948, The UWI is today an internationally respected, global university with near 50,000 students and five campuses: Mona in Jamaica, St. Augustine in Trinidad and Tobago, Cave Hill in Barbados, Five Islands in Antigua and Barbuda and its Open Campus, and 10 global centres in partnership with universities in North America, Latin America, Asia, Africa and Europe.

The UWI offers over 800 certificate, diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate degree options in Culture, Creative and Performing Arts, Food and Agriculture, Engineering, Humanities and Education, Law, Medical Sciences, Science and Technology, Social Sciences, and Sport. As the Caribbean’s leading university, it possesses the largest pool of Caribbean intellect and expertise committed to confronting the critical issues of our region and wider world.

The UWI has been consistently ranked among the top universities globally by the most reputable ranking agency, Times Higher Education (THE). In the latest World University Rankings 2022, released in September 2021, The UWI moved up an impressive 94 places from last year. In the current global field of some 30,000 universities and elite research institutes, The UWI stands among the top 1.5%.

The UWI is the only Caribbean-based university to make the prestigious lists since its debut in the rankings in 2018. In addition to its leading position in the Caribbean, it is also in the top 20 for Latin America and the Caribbean and the top 100 global Golden Age universities (between 50 and 80 years old). The UWI is also featured among the leading universities on THE’s Impact Rankings for its response to the world’s biggest concerns, outlined in the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including Good Health and Wellbeing; Gender Equality and Climate Action.

For more, visit www.uwi.edu.