15 September 2009
PAU marks 25th anniversary
Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea
RECORD staff/Branimir Schubert
Pacific Adventist University (PAU) celebrated 25 years of providing education to students from around the Pacific and beyond on the weekend of August 28 to 30. More than 1500 past and present staff, students and friends of the university gathered from around the South Pacific and further afield to celebrate the milestone.
Dr Branimir Schubert, vice-chancellor of PAU, says of the weekend, "It was a time to meet old friends, remember the past and acknowledge the many blessings we are enjoying today. It was also a time to dream about the future."
PAU was established as Pacific Adventist College in 1983, and given a charter as university by the Papua New Guinea (PNG) government in 1997.
PNG Governor-general Sir Paulias Matane gave the opening address on the Friday evening. Michael Ogio, minister for higher education, research, science and technology for the PNG government, joined the celebrations on the Sunday for the official opening of PAU Community Radio station, 97.9 2G FM. Mr Ogio gave a speech highlighting the contribution PAU makes to PNG and other Pacific islands societies.
Money collected from the June 6 PAU offering helped fund 2G FM. "‘2G' stands for ‘To God,'" says Dr Schubert. "The motto is derived from Psalm 97:9, where it says to exalt God above all the earth."
The radio station will be staffed by volunteer students and staff members of PAU, and will broadcast Christian music and programs on social and religious issues. It aims to uplift the values of a Christian lifestyle. "This station will become the ‘voice of PAU,' extending our ability to impact on the community," says Dr Schubert.
He says after only 48 hours of being on air, the station had already been inundated with phone calls and the "evening dedication" program had attracted a wide audience.
The anniversary celebration's Saturday evening concert was used to test a live broadcast and was well received by audiences.
A number of other dignitaries participated in the celebrations, representing the Australian High Commission, the chairman of the Commission of Higher Education in Papua New Guinea, foreign diplomats and representatives of the business community. Other guests for the weekend included former principals and deans of PAU, as well as former lecturers and administrators.
Dr Schubert says, "The council members also joined us for the occasion and we were very pleased Dr Barry Oliver, chancellor and president of the Adventist Church in the South Pacific, and Pastor Lawrence Tanabose, pro-chancellor and general secretary of the Adventist Church in the South Pacific, could be among the participants."
Dr Oliver says the milestone is a significant milestone for PAU and the Adventist Church in the South Pacific as a whole. "Graduates from PAU are in leadership positions right across the Pacific. PAU has demonstrated its reason for existence in the lives and contribution of these people. The church in the South Pacific would not be what it is today without PAU.
"The highlight for me personally was listening to the testimonies of past students as they recounted what God had done for them as they attended PAU, and what He continues to do in and through them."
He adds, "PAU is now becoming our full tertiary provider throughout the island nations of the South Pacific. With its three established campuses at Koiari Park near Port Moresby, Sonoma and Fulton; and developments in the Solomon Islands, PAU will offer quality educational opportunities to generations of Adventist young people into the future. It will have a large part in setting the agenda for thought leadership in the church in the Pacific for years to come."
Dr Barry Oliver and Dr Branimir Schubert cut cakes to celebrate PAU's 25th anniversary.
As well as the launch of the radio station, the anniversary program provided PAU with an opportunity to unveil a number of other significant projects, including PAU's academic journal Davaria and an interdisciplinary scholarly e-journal; a book on PAU birds, authored by Dr Michael Tarburton; and a 2010 calender, featuring PAU birds photographed by Bryan Paul.
In his address on the Sunday, Dr Schubert spoke about his dreams for the next 25 years for PAU, saying, "I dare to dream because I can see that what God has achieved at PAU in the past 25 years far exceeds what the ‘early dreamers' had in mind. . . . If we dream today, let us do so boldly, keeping in mind what kind of God we serve-a God who always exceeds our expectations."
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