ULIP Graduation Ceremony 2021
The University of London Institute in Paris was pleased to finally celebrate the achievements of its 2019/20 and 2020/21 cohorts on Thursday 9 December 2021, for a very special graduation ceremony in London. Although times are challenging for international travel, the graduands, family, friends and ULIP staff who were able to make it to the University of London’s iconic Senate House had a memorable day.
The ceremony celebrated graduates of the BA in French Studies, BA in French Studies with Business, BA in French Studies with History, BA in French Studies with International Relations and the MA in Urban History and Culture programmes, 19 of whom achieved Distinction in Spoken French. The event was livestreamed from ULIP’s website and YouTube channel.
The University of London Vice-Chancellor, Professor Wendy Thomson CBE, welcomed the new graduates to Senate House and the University of London’s global alumni community, and commented on ULIP’s unique educational experience, saying:
“You are a select and very special group of students, whose choices were to study in Paris, to explore language, culture, history and politics from a different perspective.”
ULIP and the University of London were delighted to present an Honorary degree, entitled ‘Doctor of Music honoris causa’, to celebrated jazz musician and co-founder and Artistic Director of Tomorrow’s Warriors, Gary Crosby OBE, who then treated graduates and guests to an emotional address.
Before Gary Crosby OBE received the prestigious honour from the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Anna-Louise Milne, Director of Graduate Studies and Research at ULIP, who originally recommended him for the award, delivered an oration in his honour.
Anna-Louise Milne first met Gary in October 2019, when he was invited to Paris to join a discussion curated by the University of London Institute in Paris for the occasion of the Music Migrations: Paris/London Exhibition at the French National Immigration Museum.
Professor Anna-Louise Milne said: “Gary Crosby has contributed so significantly, not only to contemporary British culture, but also to building connections across cultures and across sounds. He embodies a border-less relation to the world founded on the capacity for music, words and time spent making these come together to change people’s lives. The University of London Institute in Paris has chosen to honour that work and Gary’s life as a marker of its guiding belief in the power of cultures and people to be better together.”
Gary Crosby OBE, the co-founder and Artistic Director of Tomorrow’s Warriors added “I am deeply moved and humbled to receive this doctorate. It is an honour for me and I accept it with gratitude to Professor Milne and the team at ULIP. This has been a wonderful 30th anniversary year for Tomorrow’s Warriors, I couldn’t even dream of a better ending to the year! I grew up in West London on a council estate, so through the support of my family, I know what the power of education and music can achieve to extend my horizons, enable me to look at the world differently and see how it could be a positive force for good and bring about change. By reaching young people at a defining moment in their artistic journey, it’s been wonderful to see so much excellence coming through Tomorrow’s Warriors these past 30 years. I would like to share this honour with all the Warrior musicians it has been my privilege to bring through our programme.”
Following the ceremony and music from W1 Brass from the Royal Academy of Music, guests enjoyed canapés and drinks and were later invited to do a tour of Senate House, a sumptuous and iconic art-deco building, which regularly catches the eye of filmmakers, photographers and stylists, and includes the original Room 101, made famous by George Orwell’s eponymous 1984 and the halls used for the ceremony and reception, which doubled up for 007 in the recently released Bond film.
We look forward to keeping in touch with all our new alumni. For more information on how ULIP and the University continue to support its graduates, visit the ULIP alumni page.
This page was last updated on 26 February 2024