Today, President Kagame attended a reception to celebrate the 10 years of celebration of Rwanda – Oklahoma Christian University (OCU) Partnership. This partnership started in 2006 with the initiation of a fund for Rwandan students to attend the University.
Speaking about the partnership between Rwanda and OCU, President Kagame said : ” The story of Rwanda and Oklahoma Christian University is a valuable lesson to all of us about the power of human relationships and shared values to drive change and sustain ambition.One of the traits we share is tenacity in the face of adversity. Our respective experiences have shown us that you can come from Rwanda or Oklahoma, or anyplace else, and strive to be among the best.”
Addressing the alumni, President Kagame thanked them for their hard work and for paving the way for future generations of young Rwandans: ” Success is never just about the individual who achieves it. When each of us performs at our best, we create new possibilities for others that may not otherwise exist. By showing that Rwandans could not only compete, but excel, you played an important part in ensuring that the opportunities you enjoyed would multiply and continue to be available in the future.”
The celebration brought together over 200 people including OCU leadership, alumni, parents, government officials and business partners and served as an opportunity to launch the Oklahoma Christian – Rwanda Alumni Chapter and to announce the Scholarship Fund to which President Kagame and First Lady Jeannette Kagame pledged to contribute adding to the alumni commitment of $50,000.
To date, OCU has enrolled 341 Rwandans; 157 students at the Oklahoma campus and 184 in the MBA program based in Kigali. 131 were Rwandan Presidential Scholars.