The global economic crisis could not put a damper on Graduation Day for members of the class of 2009, who hung onto optimism, despite some real concerns about the current job market. Some 1,811 students graduated from the American University of Beirut on June 27, after spending up to four years on campus, learning, debating, making friends, and simply growing. About 1,670 graduates actually attended the ceremony. The class of 2009 had to grapple with many challenges during their student years, from wars, to political tension, to terrorism. Yet, the message delivered by graduating student Lina Kanso was hopeful.
And the pink balloons carried by many graduates reflected this insistence on optimism. “Although the picture seems quite gloomy,” Kanso said, “this does not discourage us graduates, from facing our challenges with confidence. The AUB experience not only gives us the knowledge and the analytical ability to help us understand our environment but also builds our communication skills, develops our spirit of initiative and adaptability, and teaches us to value diversity and creativity.”
Kanso, who earned a master’s degree in financial economics, is a member of the University Student-Faculty Committee. In addition to embracing hope, Kanso prodded her classmates to be “agents of change,” not followers of faulty social constructs.