The mistreated stepchild of UG’s Turkeyen campus

Nov 10, 2016 Letters

Dear Editor,
It is graduation time again for the students at the University of Guyana, and while I understand that this is a celebratory time, I cannot help but feel angered by the realization that the Berbice Campus, after more than fifteen years of existence, continues to be the mistreated stepchild of the Turkeyen Campus.
I refer specifically to two concerns. The first is the unfair treatment of the Berbice Campus students with respect to the granting of top/special awards for excellent performance. The students of the Berbice Campus have never been considered for a number of top/special awards even though many of them would have earned such awards had they been students of the Turkeyen Campus instead of the Berbice Campus.
The fortunate students of the Turkeyen Campus are the ones who would, once again, be considered for awards such as the President Medal, the Chancellor Medal, the Prime Minister Medal, the Vice-Chancellor Special Awards, and the Council of the University Prize. If the University of Guyana is truly “one university”, shouldn’t all graduating students be vying for the same awards? Why, then, does it appear as though the students of the Berbice Campus are receiving the short end of the stick? Perhaps, I can answer my own question and yes, it is because they are receiving the short end of the stick. My second concern is the obvious difference between the quality of graduation-related communication produced by the two campuses.
I recently saw the graduation invitation that my niece received from the Turkeyen Campus, and I was shocked because the one my daughter received from the Berbice Campus is not nearly as elegant. It is quite obvious which of the two invitations received substantial financial support in its production. Again, if the University of Guyana is really “one university”, shouldn’t the quality or standard of anything produced by the campuses be very similar, if not exactly the same? It saddens me to think that even with a new Vice Chancellor, the Berbice Campus remains the mistreated stepchild. I guess the idea of “one university” is just a neat cover-up for “one campus is more equal than the other”.
Melissa Singh

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