Duke of Edinburgh’s Awards Presentation for SERC Students

One Hundred Seventy Three (173) SERC students achieved the Duke Of Edinburgh Award in 18-19. This was marked by an inaugural award ceremony to celebrate at the College’s Lisburn Campus.  

The Awards were presented to students from the College’s Campuses at Downpatrick, Bangor and Lisburn and Newtownards by guest speaker, architect and intrepid explorer, Dawson Stelfox MBE, in front of 150 family, friends and special guests.     

Dawson Stelfox, no stranger to outdoor expeditions himself, leading and successfully completing an expedition to Everest, delivered a keynote speech where he congratulated the students on their success and wished them well for the future.   He said, “Starting The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award is the first step in a lifetime of adventure and experience open to everyone.”   

Julie McGimpsey, Operations Officer DofE in NI said, “Tonight has been all about celebrating the success of the students and recognising their fantastic achievements.   They have improved their physical fitness, developed new skills and been involved in a range of activities - donating 2080 hours of volunteering with a social value of £8,424 to helping their local community.   Each awardee has shown great determination, tenacity and dedication to achieve their goals.   I congratulate you all and encourage you to continue your DofE journey.”   

Michelle Hickland, Deputy Head of School of Construction, Engineering Services and Skills for Work, SERC said “One hundred and seventy-three (173) students on entry level and level 1 programmes at SERC achieved part or all of the DofE/Gaisce – The President’s Awards during 2018/19.   We are delighted with every Award, poignant because many of these students had specific barriers to learning.   We are so proud of all they have achieved, reaching and exceeding personal goals.     

“We are thrilled to have so many families and friends join us to celebrate the students’ achievement.   Each recipient of this prestigious Award has helped pave the path for their peers to follow. Offering the DofE/Joint Award Initiative is a new venture for SERC which will greatly benefit all the students who take part.  Our plan is now to open up the Award to all SERC students through Open Centres at each of our four main campuses.”    

Ken Webb, Principal and Chief Executive of SERC personally thanked Michelle and presented her with a Staff Excellence Award for her dedication and commitment securing the DofE Operating Licence for the College.   SERC is the first college in Northern Ireland to become a DofE Licenced Organisation.    

All photos are available on SERC's Facebook page. Click here to view