Dr. Roberto Cuevas Garcia with his wife and a group of guides, while awaiting the arrival of the first students of the Class of 2015 at the airport in Tegucigalpa, Honduras
On behalf of the personnel and the Board of Trustees of the Panamerican Agricultural School, Zamorano University , it is a pleasure for me to warmly welcome the Class of 2015.
I also welcome the Ambassador and Vice-Consul of El Salvador, the students’ families, the Academic Dean, the Associate Dean of Students, the Directors of the academic departments, the managers of the physical plant, the finance manager, the students, the entire Zamorano community and their families. I also wish to give special recognition to the orientation team.
New Zamorano students:
This week you are joining the student body of one of the most prestigious universities on the continent in the fields of agriculture, environmental studies and natural resource management. This is a great honor and with it comes great responsibility.
As President, I am very pleased to know that you have accepted the challenge to study and be formed at Zamorano. You are all united by the desire to excel and to prepare for life. Also each of you scored 75% or better on the admissions exam. You are here because of your enormous potential to become the leaders of the future.
At Zamorano we share a humble pride, and I ask each of you to exemplify that ideal. You are privileged, in the best sense of the word, but with that privilege comes with great responsibility. You must work very hard, applying Zamorano’s two central mottos: WORK CONQUERS ALL and LEARNING BY DOING. You came here to be formed so I advise you to take advantage of your time, comply with the institution’s rules, study, play sports and learn about the cultures of your fellow students.
I’m sure that within four years, in December 2015, you will be finishing one stage of your lives and entering a new stage as Zamorano alumni.
By this point in Orientation Week, you have become aware that this is a beautiful campus located in lush valley in the heart of a beautiful country.
Our teaching, administrative and support personnel, who are at your service, are highly capable and dedicated. Their competences make this university stand out for its academic and administrative excellence and ensure that it is always well run.
The members of the Board of Trustees, who have guided Zamorano’s destiny and overseen its development over the years, have an immense commitment to Zamorano and provide their leadership and support.
2012 is the 70th anniversary of Zamorano’s founding and the 66th anniversary of the Institution’s first graduating class, the Class of 1946.
In addition, it has been 31 years since the first women students enrolled, opening the way for the young women entering this year. It is a special pleasure for me to welcome all the women in the Class of 2015..
All of you are joining a student body of more than 1,150 students who live together in a rich multicultural environment, making the campus their own home and establishing lifetime friendships with their classmates.
I want to stress that Zamorano promotes the wellbeing and safety of all of its students, as well as leadership activities and social, cultural and sporting events, which make the Zamorano formation a valuable and unforgettable experience .
Above all, I wish to emphasize that Zamorano instills and upholds the essential values that are the mainstays of the formation that you will receive. You will undergo character and leadership development based on discipline, ethics, integrity, service and honesty. We must protect, foster and practice the positive Zamorano traditions, while eradicating the negative ones that harm individuals and the institution.
The 2012 Calendar, which you have already received, extols the values that Zamorano promotes and are part of the Zamorano Code of Conduct, which will be issued in 2012. I hope that each of you will take a few moments every month to read about the value of the month and reflect on it. You will note, for example, that the value of January is RESPECT. Professor Castillo tells us that we must respect others, their ideas, beliefs, origins, rights and physical and moral integrity.
Both male and female Zamorano students are carefully selected for their talent, capacity, will to serve and energy, which allow them to graduate and become leaders. They also join thousands of Zamorano alumni, who, through their professional successes and achievements, are living examples of the Institution’s excellence.
You new students will be graduating in 2015, and are therefore the graduates of the future.
However, you must be aware that prestige and excellence must be earned through hard work, integrity, patience, perseverance and successful participation in the Learning by Doing process in order to obtain the expected results. Your main responsibility is to take advantage of every moment at Zamorano, in order to grow better every day as people.
You new students, as well as each and every member of the Zamorano community are responsible for ensuring that future generations of Zamoranos will be able to feel proud of us and the Institution.
Always raise high the name of your families, countries and this university.
By entering Zamorano, you are taking the first and most important step toward a bright future. I wish you great success in your university education, many blessings and a happy and fruitful student life at Zamorano.
I offer you the support of the entire university staff, as well as my personal support.
Thank you very much.
