Guyana Review talks with newly elected President of the University of Guyana Students Society Joshua Griffith
GR: Yours has been an inherited position since you were elected Vice President rather than President of the UGSS. Does that make leadership any more challenging?
JG: Acting as student leader has its challenges. It is how you handle the responsibility. UG has a host of challenges. You have to work hard.
GR: There are people who see UG as an underfunded, under resourced institution that is continually mired in crisis. How do you see the University?
JG: Apart from those things that you mentioned, UG is also underpriced and undervalued. Historically, UG has also suffered from poor management practices. If management improves, so too will the University. I see the University as a microcosm of Guyana. It has potential but it requires attention and commitment. We need to become much more aware of the nexus between the growth of UG and the development of Guyana. We celebrated 50 years in October last year. As universities go, we still have a long and I hope not too hard a road to travel.
GR: What, in your opinion are the students most concerned about?
JG: Value for their money and value for them as the main stakeholders. Sometimes we feel more than a little taken for granted. Good management and accountability would also be right up there with those things that we value most.
GR: Do you believe that Guyana can afford free University education?
JG: It is not my view that our economy in its present state can afford free university education. In fact, the available evidence would appear to suggest that we continue to underestimate the cost of properly running a university. There is an obligation there, however; a social one, and we have to find ways of securing the resources. There is a lot at stake here. I can also tell you that I would like to see the UGSS bscome aggressive advocates of opportunities for persons living with disabilities to access tertiary education and student grants.
GR: What are your own priorities as UGSS President?
JG: Earnestly representing the interest of students especially in these difficult and uncertain times.
Improving communication with the University’s students, administrators and other stakeholders.
Motivating and uniting students to be more militant toward the issues that confront us.
To be an example of positive change while developing more student leaders
GR: Do you believe that politics play too big a role in the running of UG and how does the politics affect the welfare of the students?
JG: That is an interesting Guyana question. I believe that there is a place for public officials from all political sides and the private sector as well at the University. In fact there are countries across the world where political figures form part of the intellectual environment at the university, where there is ongoing intellectual exchange between the political figures and the institution of the university. The problem arises when – as has so often been the case here in Guyana, the University becomes the venue for party political battles and once those battles are raging the combatants engaged they tend to be unmindful of the welfare of the institution.
GR: What do you see as the greatest challenge for the University in the academic year ahead?
JG: The biggest challenge might well be having to adjust to the adjusted tuition fees.
