More than 600 high school students packed the bleachers at the Ivanna Eudora Kean High School gymnasium Friday as the school hosted the rally for the first UVI Pride Day.
The event was part of the University of the Virgin Islands’ effort to raise awareness of the school and its role in the community.
Kean’s rally was just one of the events marking UVI Pride Day across the territory. Each of the territory’s public high schools showed support for the university, even St. Croix’s Central High, whose campus has been closed for two weeks. Central students rallied at the university’s St. Croix campus.
University officials recognized more than 20 members of the Kean faculty and staff who graduated from UVI, drawing cheers from the students. The UVI alumni ran through a tunnel formed by cheerleaders, some showing their UVI pride by dancing or cartwheeling across the floor.
“I want you to be proud of these individuals who are teaching you because they are helping to shape your future,” UVI President David Hall urged students. “They came to UVI and received some skills, but they also received some passion for you to make sure that they mold your lives in a way that will allow you to make a difference. So please don’t take them for granted and please don’t take UVI for granted.”
Nicole Gibbs, UVI’s vice provost for access and enrollment, said UVI Pride is all about acknowledging UVI alumni and building a relationship between the university and the community. The end result, Gibbs hoped, would be more students encouraged to consider applying to UVI.
The effort was not lost on UVI alumni, who wore white and blue – the school colors – to celebrate the event.
“It’s going to bring out an awareness, not just to the community but to high schools to make them realize that so many of their workers have been to UVI, graduated from UVI, or have taken classes at UVI,” said Kean English teacher Ilive Peltier, who received her bachelor’s degree in English from UVI in 2009. “I also think it’s a great community event in terms of getting students, employees and the whole of the V.I. community together under one umbrella of education.”
Gibbs said the idea for UVI Pride Day came from one of the university’s trustees, and was later pushed forward by UVI President David Hall.
“President Hall, myself and one of my other colleagues, Dr. Frank Mills had an opportunity to meet with all of the public schools about a month ago,” shared Gibbs. “We presented the idea and they were very receptive.”
The Kean program was overseen by principal Sharon Ann McCollum, who got on the microphone and rallied the students to show that “Kean is the best high school in the territory.” The Eudora Kean Marching Band regaled the crowd with a musical medley, and the school’s cheerleaders carried out energetic routines and formed pyramids topped by the letters UVI.
Hall was so impressed with the school’s performance, he said he thought it was UVI Pride Day but it turned out to be Kean pride day because the students had so much to be proud of, including their principal McCollum, whom Hall declared an honorary UVI graduate because “she has UVI in her blood.”
It took Hall only two minutes to tell students why UVI is for them.
“We add more value to a student than any other college in the United States,” Hall began. “No matter where you come from, no matter what type of critical thinking skills you have when you arrive, you’re going to leave with more.”
Hall added that UVI’s goal is not just to make sure students get jobs, which is itself important, but to make them entrepreneurs who can create businesses, develop ideas and turn them into fortunes.
Finally, Hall said simply, “We care about our students when they are with us.”
At the end of the day, the first UVI Pride Day was a hit among UVI alumni teaching at Kean, who also think it made an impact on students.
“I think the students enjoyed coming out and seeing the teachers in colors as well, realizing that so many teachers are part of this wonderful community event,” said Peltier. “I’m really proud that UVI was able to do this today, and I’m hoping that we are able to do it in the future.”
