The Chancellor’s Inaugural Visit to Strathmore University

Monsignor Fernando Ocáriz, Prelate of Opus Dei and Chancellor of Strathmore visited the university on Thursday 19 December.

The DVC Academics and Students Affairs showing the Chancellor around the campus

The Chancellor, Mons Ocariz begun his visit with a meeting with the University Council and the Management Board. He then had a get-together with the staff and students. The Strathmore Chorale welcomed him with African songs and dance. Mons Ocariz recalled how St. Josemaría Escrivá had envisioned the University many years before it was started, noting that St. Josemaría and the late Bishop Javier Echevarria both had Strathmore University in their hearts as he also does. He said that he prays for universities with a Christian inspiration, among which is Strathmore.

He urged faculty and students to work in an interdisciplinary manner. He further encouraged the students to feel the responsibility of receiving knowledge from faculty as well as being able to transmit this knowledge themselves for the good of the society. The Chancellor asked the students to trust their lecturers and take an interest in all those around them.

The Chancellor of Strathmore University addresses the audience in the plenary session

The Staff and students had a chance to ask the Chancellor some questions and share the initiatives in which the University is involved in. Among these Joyce Akinyi asked him how she could use her work as a housekeeper to serve others. Dr Magdalene Dimba asked for advice on how to use academic research to foster the growth of the country in the human, cultural and academic fields.

Philip asked him how he could be innovative in raising the standards of people in the slums while Ian Wairua asked how to help students get the right balance in the use of social media to which the Chancellor answered that the key is to teach them to use their freedom well so that they can make the right choices in the use of social media and also to teach them that virtual friendship is not that deep, to be a friend one needs real personal contact.

Philip asks a question on how to influence his environment

Ian presented the Father with two gifts from the University: a coffee table book on Kenya and three Kitengela glass giraffes so that he could remember us by them.

After this he then walked to The Holy Family Shrine, where he blessed the image of St. Joseph and planted a tree. The final part was a meeting with the organizers of family programmes: the Institute of Family Studies, Family Network International and Programme for Family Development. He encouraged the teams to keep up the good work of forming families to be strong and stable units of the society and promised them his continued prayers.

He then gave his blessing to the entire audience and thanked them for receiving him.

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