Last Friday November 24th 2017 the Graduation Day celebrated 1,124 new “Dottori” from Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, graduating from Bachelor’s degrees in Venice and Treviso.
Rector Michele Bugliesi opened the ceremony as customary: “It is a special day in a wonderful and unique place to celebrate such an important step. You are finishing a journey, leading towards the most important choices of your life including unique memories you will long cherish. Don’t forget the good and bad memories, make an assessment, think about what mattered most. We, as professors, see you grow, change, become better persons, aware citizens who are able to give their very best. Curiosity is your guide and should be cultivated. You became experts in your own fields, you are now well informed persons with an opinion built on knowledge. This is not an arrival point though but a step towards something else. It is not a brain drain but a brain circulation that happens: go abroad because it is an invaluable experience but then come back. Diversity is a great asset. I wish you the best in your future endeavors, we will keep on following and supporting you. Quoting a great statesman from the last century “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts”.
On stage Paola Mar, Venice's head of tourism, represented the City of Venice.
This year’s guest, writer Igiaba Scego who has been collaborating with many newspapers, said: “I am thrilled… I too belong to the Ca’ Foscari community with The International Center for Humanities and Social Change. A somali girl, Maria Abdullai, like many Somalis was crossing the road on October 14th in Mogadiscio. She died because of a bomb and she did not get to graduate. An attack that was not commented on the news. So I thought of Valeria Solesin, who died at the Bataclan in Paris. My advice is not to forget the dreams of these girls and boys who were killed by evil. The ones who were supposed to graduate with her were the ones who supported the family of the victims, who created Facebook pages to inform everyone on what happened. They decided not to be afraid, and to be more than good citizens by being good ancestors thinking about the future of their country, That is why I am telling you that there will be many obstacles but you should never feel defeated. "Vivir con miedo es como vivir a media", living with fear means not living fully”.
The two valedictorians, the best students among the graduates, came on stage:
Schiavon Andrea, best Italian student graduating in Economics and Management: “This long journey brought me and all of us to learn so much from the academic standpoint and to become better persons, professionally - with the many opportunities the university provided to us including the Career Days - as well as on a human level, letting us grow by study abroad periods with Erasmus and Overseas programs. I want to thank Ca’ Foscari for all that, I want to thank Ca’ Foscari for having supported me all the way and for allowing me to feel more than just a student, but a part of a community, of an almost perfect mechanism that is the academic context”.
Hibraj Feliks, best international student graduating in Informatics: “I will tell you something that is usually taken for granted but is still true. If you deal with everything with peace of mind, the outcome will always be better. Peace of mind is up to us. We are the ones who decide what to be satisfied of. We are the ones who decide how what surrounds us should affect us”.
The event was organized thanks to the support of the City of Venice, Vela Spa and Veritas. We would like to thank the Commission for Architectural and Landscape Heritage of Venice and Lagoon.
Programme:
Friday November 24th 2017
Saint Mark Square
2.30pm Welcome address by the Rector, greetings from the authorities, Opening speech by Igiaba Scego
3.10pm Giuseppe Del Torre Awards
3.20pm Greetings from the highest ranking Italian and foreign student of the degree session
3.30pm Proclamation and Degree presentation
4.30pm End of ceremony
