Gov. Gen. Michaelle Jean praised the virtues of higher education Tuesday to a packed house of graduates in mortar boards at the University of Alberta.”You are part of the solutions and we must ensure that your voices are heard,” Jean said during her convocation speech at the Jubilee Auditorium on the university campus in Edmonton. “It is here that the act of thinking critically is often developed.
Gov. Gen. Michaelle Jean praised the virtues of higher education Tuesday to a packed house of graduates in mortar boards at the University of Alberta.”You are part of the solutions and we must ensure that your voices are heard,” Jean said during her convocation speech at the Jubilee Auditorium on the university campus in Edmonton. “It is here that the act of thinking critically is often developed.
“It is here where it can emerge as the cement with which citizens can build bastions against barbarism. It is here where it can become the impetus of democratic life. In this way, universities are one of the very guardians of our freedom.”
Jean was granted an honorary doctorate of laws from Chancellor Eric Newell in recognition, he said, of her work as Governor General and “dedication to the ideals of truth and freedom.”
Jean was speaking at the school’s 100th anniversary. She told the graduates that “knowledge institutions” such as the university must be nurtured, cultivated and strengthened.
-with a report from CP