CHILL MAGAZINE

As Barbados and the rest of the region look forward with confidence to emerging from the current recession, The University of the West Indies at Cave Hill can be counted on to demonstrate leadership and commitment to whatever effort is required to regenerate our economies.

 

At the Campus level, where we are ever mindful of maintaining the highest quality by way of rigorous monitoring and benchmarking against best practices, we anticipate continuing along a trajectory of growth and expansion through financial and academic innovation.

 

I have been encouraging fellow academics and administrators not to become constrained in a mindset of crisis management, but to strive for creative and innovative strategies that will help to further generate new and relevant programmes and facilitate enrolment. This approach is critical if we are to successfully confront challenges that will require novel intellectual vigour to guarantee continued modernisation and growth for the Campus.

 

It is important that the Campus maintains its propulsion over the next two to three years, furthering its transformative thrust towards becoming a worldclass institution by the time it reaches its 50th anniversary in the year 2013. Understandably, much of this growth must be funded through revenue generation by the Campus itself through our continuing to pursue a path of increased self-reliance, while broadening our partnership with the private sector and benefiting from the increased generosity of other stakeholders including international donors.

 

Our efforts at increased self-reliance have begun to bear some fruit, as evidenced by an augmented slate of self-funded master’s programmes and a significantly enhanced graduate research programme to attract greater international collaboration and funding.

 

As indicated within this magazine, increased international partnership has seen us embark on a collaborative initiative – the newly established International Institute of Financial Risk and Regulation – designed to facilitate improved monitoring of the regional financial environment. In addition, similar partnership in the creation of a Biological Research Centre offers much promise for the production of bioactive compounds to treat the scourge of noncommunicable diseases. We also anticipate positive developments in physics, electronics and computer science where there’s potential for a new thrust in digital design and internet management to yield new programmes in a range of career applications and to help stimulate the small business sector.

 

Indeed, the path ahead to “Cave Hill @ 50” will require a redefining of the academic boundaries through new programmes, centres, institutes and faculties. If we can implement these things effectively, when we reach our golden milestone, the current financial crisis would have long been erased from our memories, as the Campus, like our region, would have emerged restructured and stronger, to face the future.

 

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