by Preksha Bapna
AUC to celebrate its 10th Dies Natalis in honour of its second lustrum
Amsterdam University College (AUC) recently celebrated their 10th anniversary on September 22nd, 2019! Located in Amsterdam Science Park, AUC has built a community of over 1500 alumni, 900 students enrolled, and over 70 lecturers and staff members. Together with this community, they aim to work towards their “mission to deliver an outstanding Liberal Arts and Sciences education” and “promote learning in an inclusive and inspiring international environment”, says the current Dean, Professor Dr. Murray Pratt. Along with partners of AUC, Pratt also would like to “celebrate and acknowledge the incredible contribution that AUCSA has made over the years in building and sustaining a thriving and respectful student community. To show gratitude, appreciation, and celebrate their 10th year, AUC organized a series of events throughout the academic year.
September 23rd, 2019: AUC kicked off their Lustrum celebrations by serving cake to students and staff in the academic building. They also provided other options such as ice cream and vegan cakes, which was a great way to start off the week!
September 27th, 2019: AUC officially celebrated their anniversary at the Koninklijk Instituut voor de Tropen (also known as Royal Tropical Institute), as that was where AUC was launched 10 years ago. The event was open to all students, lecturers, alumni, and other members who have been involved with AUC in the past 10 years. At 15:30, AUC opened the gates to welcome guests with an arrival drink. The ceremony was hosted by Gerylaine Campos, External Relations Officer, and Huan Hsu, Senior Tutor. The ceremony consisted of musical performances, speeches, a video reflection, panel discussions, and a keynote address, followed by a reception.
Maurits Jurgens, a second year student, thought it was nice to see where AUC started from and how it has grown. As the secretary of AUC’s Student Association, Maurits said it was nice to meet previous boards but it was also interesting for the current and old boards to see how the AUCSA has developed. Maurits also acknowledged that it was nice to open the ceremony to external parties and a wider UC body to show support for each other.
October 1st, 2019: AUC hosted an alumni dinner and student party at Skatecafe, where current students and alumni played live music and sets. Maurits said it was nice that the party was outside of Science Park as a way to show that AUC is not only located in Science Park, but rather the city of Amsterdam. Iqra Nowshari, a third year student, played a DJ set at the event, and said she thought the party was really fun and there was a great turn out, despite the weather. Pratt thought it was a genuine delight to meet his former students and catch up. Pratt says “it is a wonderful opportunity to reconnect and hear about their contributions, but also a moment for current students and colleagues to anticipate the years to come, and there is much to look forward to”.
There will be multiple events throughout the year as part of the Lustrum programme, the next one being the Presentation of the AUC Time Capsule in November. The first six months of the year will also be dedicated towards this with events such as Creative Academic Competition, Community Outreach Day, and the Capstone and Academic Conference. We, as the UCSRN Executive Board, would like to congratulate AUC on their Lustrum and wish them the best for their future!
