Celebrating academic excellence a grand ceremony by AUW
Last weekend, Asian University for Women (AUW) in Chittagong, celebrated their 7th convocation ceremony at a 5 star hotel in the port city. A total of 100 students from 12 different countries received their Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees in Economics, Politics, Philosophy & Economics (PPE), Bioinformatics, Environmental Sciences and Public Health. The ceremony was moderated by the Chancellor of AUW, Cherie Blair. The speakers were the acting Minister of Finance and the Chief Adviser on Infrastructure and Technology to the President of Afghanistan, Mohammad Humayon Qayoumi and renowned Rabindra Sangeet singer Rezwana Choudhury Bannya. They were also awarded with the Doctorate of Laws and Doctorate of Arts degrees respectively.
The Founder of AUW, Kamal Ahmad, introduced the two convocation speakers to the audience. The President of BGMEA, Rubana Haq and the former adviser of Caretaker government of Bangladesh, Rokeya Afzal Rahman, were also present. The Vice Chancellor of AUW, Nirmala Rao, Registrar of AUW, Dave Dowland, Director of Admission, Rehana Alam Khan and on behalf of the students, Montaha Chowdhury, also delivered valuable and enlightening speeches for the audience.
In the convocation ceremony, Abreshmi Nawar, Ferowza Swapnil and Mahreen Mostafa were awarded with the Andy Matsui Award for academic excellence.These three students achieved the top cumulative grade point averages in their entire cohort of the AUW Class of 2019.
Cherie Blair, in her speech mentioned that the students had the talent and capabilities to bring significant changes in their society. She also added that the young people would have to be artisans who will surely bring positive changes. Their talent must be utilized appropriately in their work sectors. Through these actions, the society will be able to achieve morally strong and well-wishing leaders. Blair also mentioned that AUW has been playing a vital role to nourish women who fight for their rights to education.
The acting Minister of Finance of Afghanistan, Mohammad Humayon Qayoumi, stated that at present, we see two different pictures of the world where one picture consists of the abundance of wealth and power and the other one consists of poverty and sufferings. He added that we must work to overcome such an unhealthy difference. He said that the students must dream big and work hard to turn their dreams into reality with the determination and courage to overcome all the obstacles. “The fight against the existing sufferings and discriminations will remain incomplete without proper leadership,” he said. Rezwana Choudhury Bannya in her speech also mentioned that AUW was made to prepare and nurture students who have the potential and capability to become successful future leaders.
The ceremony started with an inspirational song of Rabindranath Tagore and ended with another memorable performance by Rezwana Choudhury Bannya.
