PRESS RELEASE
Haigazian University
Mira Yardemian, Public Relation Director
Kantari – Beirut
Tel: 961 1 349230/1
Email: [email protected]
156 Students Bid Farewell to Haigazian University
Keynote speaker Sarkis D. Yoghourtdjian: Human relations – be they
personal or professional – should not be zero sum games
On Friday, June 28, 2013, 156 students proudly earned their bachelor’s
and master’s degrees, at Haigazian University’s 53rd commencement
exercises, amidst a mixed atmosphere of cheer and emotion, thus
marking the end of yet another successful academic year.
Government Minister General Panos Manjian represented the President of
the Republic, the Speaker of the Parliament, and the President of the
Council of Ministers. Mr. Mohammad Al Mashnouk was there to represent
the newly appointed Prime Minister, Mr. Tammam Salam. Among the
attendees were also Minister Vrej Sabounjian, MPs Sebouh Kalpakian and
Shant Chinchinian, the representative of the Commander of the Army,
the first secretary of the Armenian Embassy, Vartan Atamian, the
President of the Supreme Council of the Evangelical Community in Syria
and Lebanon, Rev. Selim Sahyouni, former ministers and MPs, clergy,
members of the Board of Trustees, parents, relatives and friends.
A celebratory processional march by faculty and students, led by Chief
Marshall Dr. David Tawil, followed by the Lebanese National Anthem and
the prayer of invocation offered by Campus Minister, Rev. Bruce
Schoup, opened the auspicious ceremony.
“Higher education is meant to help us look outside our window, while
also looking into a mirror,” said University President Paul Haidostian
to the class of 2013.
Emphasizing more on its sociopolitical and global framework,
Haidostian considered that higher education faces new manifestations:
“A world of over-integration in which one is to integrate everything
into one reality, one method, be it religious, political, economic, or
cultural, and a world of disintegration with the feeling that
everything is falling apart, with no sense of authority, respect, or
civility, a world where localized terror seems to be the globalized
threat.”
Regarding over-integration, Haidostian reiterated on the fact that
it’s the education’s mission to “show that life comes in shades of
various colors, realities of various shapes, and that humility
regarding our own method and our knowledge is a key to learning and
goodness,” and as to disintegration, the education’s missions lies in
“keeping hope alive, and the promise of life being where we get free
and connected with each other.”
He then introduced keynote speaker, Sarkis D. Yoghourtdjian, Assistant
Director of the Banking Supervision and Regulation, of the Federal
Reserve System at Washington DC.
An international banker, and a sought-after consultant for global
banking issues, Yoghourtjian is the recipient of the prestigious
Anania Shirakatsi Medal, bestowed on him in 2012 by the President of
the Republic of the Armenia, for his notable services in the
establishment and modernization of the Central Bank of the Republic of
Armenia. Also, in November 2012, Mr. Yoghourtdjian was honored as the
Man of the Year by the Union or Arab Banks during its annual gathering
in Beirut. He is the first Lebanese-Armenian to be conferred such an
honor.
“I have found no greater satisfaction than achieving success through
honest dealings and strict adherence to the view that for you to gain,
those you deal with should gain as well. Human relations – be they
personal or professional – should not be zero sum games.” With these
words Yoghourtdjian summed up his advice to the fresh graduates, as
they get ready to embark into a new phase of their lives.
Talking from his personal experience and sharing his humble beginnings
as a Lebanese-Armenian, Yoghourtdjian credited his success to
“immeasurable perseverance, will-power, and hard work.”
He also focused on the notion of horizons and perspectives, and in
this respect Yoghourtdjian said, “I believe that my efforts throughout
my life to expand my horizons and to keep a broad perspective have
helped better meet the challenges that have come my way. At the same
time, because I appreciate the role of chance and contingency in human
events, I try to be appropriately realistic about my own
capabilities.”
He finally concluded to be always driven by love, affirming that, “a
career decision based only on money and not on love of the work or
desire to make a difference, is a recipe for unhappiness.”
Two students delivered speeches before their fellow classmates.
Valedictorian Rayan Batlouni, a candidate for a Bachelor degree in
Social Work, hailed Haigazian University for its diversity and safe
environment. “This mixture of cultures – especially the Armenian and
the Lebanese – gives this university its uniqueness and richness”,
Batlouni noted.
She further underlined three values that have marked her journey at
Haigazian University: Freedom of expression, passion for knowledge,
responsibility and commitment.
Quoting Russian novelist Maxime Gorky, “every human being is born
twice: the first is the physiological delivery, and the second is the
intellectual, ethical and scientific birth of the human being”,
Batlouni gratefully thanked all parents and Haigazian University.
For her part, Nanor Parseghian, a candidate for Bachelor degree in
Business Administration, appreciated the unwavering efforts of the
University administration and faculty body for arming them with
virtues, knowledge and confidence, thus making them ready for life’s
challenges.
As she goes separate ways with her friends, Parseghian urged her
fellow classmates to act and work towards the fulfillment of their
dreams, always bearing in mind to be at the service and bring pride to
their country, Lebanon.
Upon the benediction offered by the President of the Union of the
Armenian Evangelical Churches in the Near East, Rev. Megrdich
Karageozian, graduates threw their caps high into the air, as colorful
balloons flew overhead.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
