Commencement 2008

Commencement 2008

Commencement Services

John F. Kennedy Award Winner Pledges to Continue To Help, Advocate For Those in Need

Boston, Mass.—Muna Kangsen, a native of Cameroon who plans to use the lessons learned as a student and activist at UMass Boston to help the economically and politically disenfranchised, will receive the John F. Kennedy Award as the Class of 2008’s outstanding undergraduate at the university's 40th commencement on May 30, 2008. Kangsen will graduate with a bachelor's degree in political science from the College of Liberal Arts.

"My education at UMass Boston has been a blessing in that it has opened my eyes to the injustice that exists in the world," said Kangsen in a statement prior to Commencement. "It has also impressed upon me the urgent need and obligation to do something to change it."

First awarded in 1977, the JFK Award is the highest honor that an undergraduate can receive. Nominees are evaluated on the basis of their academic record, their service contributions, and their overall contributions as a citizen of the University and of the world. The chosen recipient receives a bust of John F. Kennedy, an honorarium, and the opportunity to speak at the main University commencement ceremony.

In addition to his studies, Kangsen was the president of the African Students Union from 2005 through 2007, and also served as a member of the Undergraduate Student Senate for two academic years. Kangsen also led two different groups of student volunteers to New Orleans to help with rebuilding after Hurricane Katrina, and wrote a resolution which called on the University of Massachusetts to divest from Sudan in protest of the genocide in Darfur, an effort which helped lead to the system's divesting from the Sudan in April of last year. After receiving his degree from UMass Boston, Kangsen hopes to pursue a degree in International Law.

In their letters of recommendation for the award, Kangsen's professors praised not just his intelligence and drive, but his ability to uncover truths in creative and often surprising ways.

"In his analysis of conflict of politics, he drew on evolutionary biology to tighten his research," said Professor of Philosophy Ajume Wingo. "For Muna, education is not a means to an end, it is an end, a calling, a vocation. [But] Muna is not an idle wonderer—I see Muna as a student with a focus and a road map to get to where he wants to get."

"Muna is a very effective leader who thinks deeply about complicated issues, can see many sides of conflictual situations, and relates with great care to the people who cross his path," said Professor of Sociology Estelle Disch. "He is, in short, a very special human being. His vision, his caring, and his commitment to social justice are deep and unwavering."