President takes part in diploma award ceremony of Pedagogical University’s alumni

Today, President Serzh Sargsyan took part in the diploma awarding ceremony of the alumni of the Armenian State Pedagogical University after Khachatur Abovian. The diplomas were awarded for the 2013-2014 academic year.

The Armenian President handed excellency diplomas to around two dozen best alumni, congratulated them on the occasion of graduation and earning their teaching degrees and wished them personal happiness and professional achievements.

“Today, some of you was handed diplomas, the others will be certainly delivered or maybe they have already been awarded, but I assure you that receiving a diploma does not mean that you have already become pedagogues. The high title of a pedagogue is received or is earned through many years’ diligent work, self-education and personal development. Today, you have just given the right to enter a school, enter a class, yet you should put great efforts into earning that title. What I say is that you have just finished this educational period, this phase, and this not the end; rather than this is the beginning of the longest period of studying. A man should study all his life, should acquire new knowledge, otherwise that man can’t be satisfied with his life, that man can’t live in harmony with himself and can’t be of great help to society. It is a well-known fact that our great ancestors – from Mesrop Mashtots to Khachatur Abovian – were either teachers or professors. Even the great who did not teach personally, were called teachers by next generations. The range of your professional responsibilities is very inclusive. I ask you to consider this as well. Tomorrow, when you enter a class and see dozens pairs of curious eyes, remember that those children are the most precious treasures of their parents and their motherland and remember that tomorrow’s Armenia is going to look at you with those eyes.

This is the first time I have publicly announced that within the framework of education policy the Armenian authorities has developed a large, important and a costly project which will be presented at the beginning of this academic year – at the end of this summer. All the people who will be actively engaged in implementing the project will be in the focus of the state’s and the society’s attention. I do not want to go into details because we are making the last arrangements in an effort to finalize the project and we will dwell on it at the end of this summer.

It gives you a good opportunity and opens up a good prospect for working in your favorite profession and going forward.

I wish all of you successes and once again congratulate you on the occasion of finishing this period of studying and I wish you personal happiness and professional achievements. Always keep in mind that Armenia’s future depends on your achievements,” said President Serzh Sargsyan in his congratulatory address to the alumni.

At the end of the event, the rector of the university Ruben Mirzakhanyan handed the Medal of Khachatur Abovian to the Armenian President. The medal is the oldest ministerial medal in Armenia and has a 70 year history.