May 2020: Monthly update from the President

May 29th, 2020

Dr. Vianne Timmons

Being a leader is not only about inspiring others; it’s also about being inspired, according to General (Ret’d) Rick Hillier, Memorial’s former chancellor and honorary graduate.Watching our students cross the finish line to graduation during this pandemic has truly been inspiring. And now they are launching forth to change the world.

Unfortunately, one of the biggest days of a student’s life – convocation – could not go ahead this spring. But we were determined to recognize and celebrate the students’ years of hard work, and on May 28 held an in absentia convocation (think basketball game with no audience) so that the students’ academic achievements could be approved by the university’s Senate and parchments mailed.

In anticipation of this, our faculties and schools have been celebrating the graduates in a wide variety of ways over the past month.

Last night we staged a fun online event for all of our graduates called Hats Off! A Facebook Live Event Celebrating Memorial’s Class of 2020. COVID-19 has taken a lot from this year’s class, and this was a time to relax, celebrate and have fun.

All of the special guests were alumni, and I'm so proud of their accomplishments and grateful for their participation. Trent McClellan of 22 Minutes fame did a spectacular job of hosting the celebration. Musician Alan Doyle and Class of 2020 graduate Jenny Mallard were on hand, and it concluded with a performance by musical duo Fortunate Ones. It really was one for the (virtual) books!

As Jenny said in the conclusion of her remarks, “We are ready to take on everything that this world has in store for us. Today we are resilient. Today we are unstoppable. Today we are the future.”

These graduates are going to make a positive difference. Some already are.

Faculty of Nursing graduate Julie White is a co-founder of MUNFON Gives Back. Throughout her degree program, Ms. White and her fellow nursing students organized events big and small, including food, clothing, personal hygiene and blood drives; raised awareness about mental health through Bell Let’s Talk; and walked in support of the Eating Disorder Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador. Find out more about Ms. White in It takes a community.

Saif Ahmed came to St. John’s in 2014 from Bangladesh to attend Memorial. This year he co-founded Project Food for Thought N.L., a community-driven mobile food bank. It focuses on providing essential food items to anyone facing financial, social, accessibility or transit-based barriers. The project has not only taken meaningful steps toward creating accessibility for food resources, but has also created job opportunities for others in these uncertain times. Read Personal and professional to learn more.

In 2012 Warren Lushman, a Grenfell Campus student, was given a five per cent chance of living. Mr. Lushman beat the odds and defied death, but his journey was all uphill. It included overcoming some extraordinary challenges. He had to learn how to walk and talk all over again. He had to learn to read. He graduated this spring with a BA and plans to do an education degree. With his grit and determination, you know he will change the world. Read Pure grit to learn his full story.

It is these women and men who, in the months to come, will be critical to our pandemic recovery and economic response and who, in the years to come, will be the leaders our society needs. Now, more than ever, these talented, determined individuals will influence what the future has in store for all of us.

As social entrepreneur Zita Cobb noted when she received an honorary doctorate from Memorial in 2015, “Graduation is an in-between place – in between here and there.” In these difficult times, we’re helping our students get “there.” For example, Memorial is hosting an event called Campus to Career on June 4. This half-day virtual opportunity will help graduating students transition from classroom to career.

A new Graduating Student Handbook was developed, and a mentorship initiative that connects graduates with alumni, 10,000 Coffees, continues. We hope the Class of 2020 will continue to engage with Memorial as they join the Memorial alumni family of more than 100,000. Perhaps some of them will become mentors over virtual cups of coffee, just like some of you.

These are challenging times for everyone. Fortunately, we have Memorial University graduates with imagination galore. Just picture what they will do. What a difference they will make.

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