Shaping the future, staying curious and developing further!

Good spirits, a great atmosphere, and even better weather! Under bright sunshine, the graduates gathered last Saturday, April 21, 2018, for the formal disenrolment (from university) ceremony in the Zittau Auditorium. The ceremony, which served as the kickoff event for the all-day central graduation celebration, took place with record attendance.

Around 470 guests filled the rows of chairs and listened to the Rector’s opening remarks starting at 1:30 p.m. He welcomed not only the graduates and their proud parents and relatives but also the guests of honor and university staff in attendance, and found fitting words to describe the educational chapter at Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences that was coming to a close.

Zittau’s Mayor Thomas Zenker then not only offered his congratulations to the former students, but also—in light of the current challenges facing democracy in our country—expressed his hope that, as they pursue their future career paths, they would actively engage in societal discourse to help shape the country democratically.

This call was also echoed by this year’s recipient of the Teaching Award, which was presented for the second time since 2015. Daniela Ahrens, a faculty member in the Faculty of Social Sciences, was honored for her outstanding dedication to teaching. She concluded her acceptance speech with the plea, “Stay curious!”, thereby underscoring the hope expressed to the graduates for a lifelong pursuit of personal growth.

This year’s graduates, who were honored with the award from the Friends of the Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences e.V. for outstanding academic achievement, also proved to be curious and determined. One of a total of six award recipients, Marlen Krause from the Faculty of Business Administration and Engineering Management, received the award for her successful Diplom thesis, which she had carried out at a Czech company, paving the way for the company to meet new regulatory requirements through the implementation of new methods. The Diplom in industrial engineering concluded her commencement speech with a quote from the late Stephen Hawking: “It’s important that you simply never give up. Remember to look up at the stars—and not down at your feet.”

Following the farewell ceremonies for the graduates of the individual faculties, which were accompanied by the “Mandau Quartet” and a medley spanning the past five “academic” years by Franziska Stölzel, a gathering took place around 3:30 p.m. in Zittau’s Student Park for the joint christening of the graduates’ tree.

The horse chestnut tree, christened with ceremonial remarks by the Vice President for Education and International Affairs, Prof. Christa Maria Heidger, is now the 40th tree to adorn the Student Park since its founding in 2009. In good weather, the graduates clearly enjoyed carrying on this cherished tradition and, for the fifth time now, releasing hundreds of green balloons into the cloudless Zittau sky. These were accompanied by their wishes and dreams for the future.

At 6:00 p.m., for the second year in a row, the doors of the Zittau Volkshaus opened for the evening graduation ball. Following the group photos and the opening of the buffet, the Liberec-based “Big ‘O’ Band” created a festive atmosphere with their mix of swing, funk rock, and pop, filling everyone in the hall—regardless of age—with a joy for dancing and life. The grand finale was a fire show featuring Dhyana Fire Dance, after which the celebration continued to the late hours of the night to the beat of the DJ’s music.

We congratulate all graduates and extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who played a key role in organizing the central graduation ceremony. Special thanks go to the Friends of the Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences e.V. as well as to the Student Council.

Text: Cornelia Rothe, M.A.