Diligent, altruistic, radiant ray of positivity – these are the descriptors of the educators here in IMU University. Lecturers, professors, tutors, and teachers, make up the impactable team of educators encouraging students and peers alike to make great strides towards success. Therefore, the IMU Scholar Committee has organised an Educators’ Appreciation Day (EAD) to commemorate and pay tribute to our amazing educators.
A Week Prior to The Event
A week prior to the event, pre-event activities were held. With “Garden of Knowledge: Cultivating Great Minds” being the theme, an origami flower folding booth was set up for students to create paper flowers in preparation of the closing ceremony. In addition, the Creative Photo Competition and Motivational Master Award voting poll were open.
Creative Photo Competition
A competition which had students taking comedic yet wholesome photos with their lecturers.
Motivational Master Award
An esteemed award to be given to the educator voted the most motivational by students from each programme and school.
The Day Before The Event
The day before the event, the Atrium was brought to life once more with booths donning décor alike to that of flower gardens.
Heart Strings booth
Students weaved a heart with yarn as a symbol of collective love felt towards educators.
Gratitude Tree booth
Students wrote notes or messages to their lecturers on sticky notes on mesh trees to be displayed during the closing ceremony.
Bingo Competition
Students performed a series of activities ranging from giving a standing ovation to singing.
The Event Day
The closing ceremony of EAD kickstarted with an inspiring speech from Prof Ian Martin Symonds, Deputy Vice Chancellor of Academic followed by a student band performance of the songs “Somewhere Only We Know” and “Can’t Stop This Feeling”.
After the inspiring speech and electrifying performance, the Award Ceremony commenced starting with the Creative Photo Award with each photograph showcasing the closeness between students and lecturers. Then, the Motivational Master Award was presented to 15 educators from different programmes to acknowledge their passion, compassion, and a deep-rooted love for their specialties that motivates their students to thrive and strive for more.
Before the event ended, the second student performance invigorated the audience with an emotional performance of “You Raise Me Up” and “In This Moment”. A tumultuous applause marked the end of their performance. Lastly, to close EAD, event president, Shariann Choo Yan Qi, delivered a speech that encompassed the gratitude students and committee felt towards the educators of IMU University.
After group photos were taken, educators read through the notes left on the Gratitude Tree and appreciated the Heart Strings woven whilst enjoying the light refreshments.
All-in-all, EAD successfully achieved its goal of reminding educators that their efforts in educating students have not gone unnoticed and that they are appreciated by students.
Written by Willem Tan B Jay