evagabourel

BOG RemarksSHJC Graduation

June 4 2016

Good Evening:

Chairman and Members of the Board of Governors

President of Sacred Heart College

Dean of Sacred Heart Junior College Mr. Fermin Magana

Administrators, Faculty, Staff, Guest Speaker, Invited guests, and Graduates

Sacred Heart College was founded in 1960, the first secondary school in the Cayo District. It has been hailed as, “the best legacy bequeathed by the Roman Catholic Church to an appreciative community in Western Belize.” In 1972, through Fr. Osmond Peter Martin, SHC obtained its permanent home on this campus where we are now gathered. In 1985 then Bishop Osmond Peter Martin established the Board of Governors of Sacred Heart College whose responsibility was to set policy, provide direction and to assist in the overall development of the institution. Over the years, SHC has been blessed with volunteers who are committed to doing just that. I pause here to introduce our present Board of Governors who include: Chairman Mr. Escander Bedran, Vice-Chairman Mr. Luciano Cuellar, Mrs. Isaura Williams, Mr. Lizandro Quiroz, Mrs. Marylee Harrison, Mr. Stephen Sangster, Mrs. Emogene Habet Alcoser, Mr. Manuel Matus, Mrs. Andrea Guerra, Mr. David Morey, Mrs. Penny Alfaro, myself Eva Gabourel and ex-officio members Fr. Benjamin Roblero and Mrs. Rocio Carballo.  

Sacred Heart Junior College was established in 1999 and the class of 2001 was its first graduating class. I myself am a proud alumni of SHJC. I graduated from this fine institution in 2003 (after graduating from Sacred Heart College in 2001) Now fast forward 15 years later and here we are with the Cohort of 2016.  

You know, one of the greatest things about Sacred Heart College Inc of which SHC and SHJC are both partners, is its people and their long term commitment. Just looking around, and I’m sure even as some of the parents of graduating class look around, we see so many familiar faces of teachers, faculty and staff who have been here for more years than we would like to count. I went to High School with Ms. Ayuso, and here she is a very familiar face and a role model for many at SHJC. Laura with her friendly smile has been here for as long as I can remember and Mr. Fermin Magana, the present Dean of SHJC was my Economics teacher more than 15 years ago. If that does not make them a part of the woodwork of this institution I don’t know what does. Every single member of this institution, is a part of the greater family that is Sacred Heart College. Together we continuously strive for excellence in Education. As SHJC’s mission states, we aim to be catalysts of positive change and as the vision states, we want to holistically transform our members and positively impact Belize. We value quality, accountability, respect, innovation, service and leadership.  

On behalf of the Board of Governors of Sacred Heart College we are proud of the progress SHJC has made and continues to make over the years. We have seen an increase in enrollment of almost 30% last year and we credit this to the introduction of day classes. We are actively working to see to it that SHJC gets a campus of its own so that it can expand at a faster pace and on a larger scale to be able to benefit even more students. But for now, we are trying to maximize our resources to offer the best possible quality of education for our junior college students. We now have our own fully functional multipurpose computer lab and there are now more designated student-friendly areas on campus. Both the High School and Junior College continue to actively work toward the completion of this Auditorium.

Another thing that the Board is very proud of is our progress toward transparency and accountability through systems put in place over the past two years. Progress is a never ending process and we continue to do all we can. Sometimes we meet obstacles, and sometimes we take detours, sometimes we don’t all get along but we never lose sight of the common goal of providing quality education and that’s what’s important.

So THANKS. Thanks to the Faculty and staff and administration who give so much of themselves, who care, who go above and beyond for students and for the institution… who are generous in giving a little or a lot more extra with no expectation of anything in return but simply appreciate the goodness they imprint on our beloved Belize through developing others.

Excellence. Innovation. Productivity.  

That is what SHJC wishes to impart on its students.  

On behalf of the Board of Governors, I would like to extend sincere congratulations to all of the graduates today. Special congratulations to those students who made it on the Dean’s list and to Giann Vasquez for obtaining the highest GPA. Well done to all of you! The world is your playground. Embrace it, enjoy it, develop it but take care of it, and make it a better place for tomorrow’s generation.  

As you leave here and embark upon the next chapter in your lives, whether it is to further education, new employment, or even just an improved life based on the milestone accomplished here today I wish you all the best and a good attitude. A good attitude is everything and a good attitude gets you everywhere. I want you to really think about that.

We say farewell but we hope that you will continue to be a part of this Sacred Heart family in one way or another.

Finally, to conclude, many of you may be familiar with the iconic Muhammad Ali. If you are not may I suggest you “Google” him? He passed away yesterday and as I reflected on all his famous quotes that have inspired me over the years I remembered that when I delivered the thank you address at my SHJC graduation in 2003, I left my peers, as I will now leave you, with this Muhammad Ali quote: “To be a great champion, you must BELIEVE you are the best. If you’re not pretend you are.”