Queen’s Elite Academy and UNICEF have held a big commencement in the Hart House of University of Toronto.

The commencement was held by Queen’s Elite Academy and UNICEF, in the Hart House of University of Toronto, a university built 100 years ago. Led by teachers, students were standing in line outside the House, all in blue graduation gowns and caps, waiting for the sacred time in their lives to come. The opening address was delivered by Keth Kinsey, one of the teachers.

Then, Mrs. Carol Eckler, President of the school, invited all graduates and faculties to rise up and sing Canada’s national anthem, “O Canada”.

President Eckler then summarized the various activities that took place during the last year, including visits to universities and companies, the voluntary Terry Fox marathon, the Euclid mathematics competition, and many others. Mrs. Eckler said she was amazed by the students’ growth. Then, she read the congratulatory letter from Prime Minister Trudeau. In the letter, the Prime Minister said he has attached great importance to this ceremony and extended his sincere wishes to all graduates.

Simon, QEA’s Vice President, also made a speech to appreciate the hard work of all faculties and their friendship with the students. By telling his own stories, Simon encouraged graduates to strike forward while keeping feet on the ground.

“Speed of development is only going to increase, and only those who stick to their goals will succeed, ” said Simon. “Perseverance” is the sincerest wish QEA gave to its graduates.

We also had Mr. Han Dong, former M.P.P and Secretary of the Department of Higher Education with us that day. Mr. Han highlighted the importance of education and analyzed the trend of educational globalization. He highly recommended QAE’s determination towards education.

Mrs. Nell Redley, the Development Minister of Rotman Commence of the, University of Toronto, was the host, and expressed her gratefulness to Vice President Simon, who is an alumnus of the University of Toronto, for his enduring passion towards education. She also spoke highly of the permanent scholarship established by Rotman and QEA, which encourages and helps international students. Mrs. Redley wished graduates could learn from their Vice President and cherish their alma mater while moving determinedly forward and making their own successes.

We received many congratulations from various elites, such as: Mrs. Iqra Khalid, M.P., Mrs. Elizabeth Betowiski, who is acting as M.P. Jean Yip’s Spokesperson, and Mrs. Cheryl Ramage, Minister of Admission at Ryerson University. They all wished QEA a brighter future. We also have received congratulations from Canadian dignitaries: Mr. Ahmed Hussen, the Minister of Immigration; Mrs. Mary Ng, inister of Small Corporation and Export promotion Department; Mr. John Tory, Mayor of Toronto; and Mr. Jim Watson, Mayor of Ottawa.

Four graduate representatives, Vince Wang, Neo Nie, Bella Wang and Katherine Zhu, also addressed the graduates. They did a retrospection of their wonderful life at the on campus, and shared their changes in both mind and cognition. When talking about the future, they showed their strong wishes to make contribution to society.

Then, two graduates played the guitar, the harmonica, and sang. Their performance was a nice addition to the commencement.

Finally, the exciting award ceremony started. Students went to the stage in order when teachers called their names, and received their diploma from President Carol, with whom they also took photos with, leaving a nice moment of their lives in the picture.

After the ceremony, everyone moved to the outside venue. Students Unions from 12 universities have built booths and chatted with graduates, answering their questions about their colleges.

We also had a booth for charity sale, for volunteer guests to donate money into a transparent box and choose presents they liked. By 5 pm, we received 1,485CAD in total. All the money will go to UNICEF, as QEA’s student hope to make a difference to the world education.

We would like to thank all who were involved. The 2019 commencement and charity sale of QEA witnessed our graduates’ growth and progress over the last year. We extend our best wishes to all, and wish them a bright future.