KINGSTON, Jamaica – Sir Hilary Beckles has been appointed as the next Vice-Chancellor of the University with effect May 1, 2015.

Chairman of the Search Committee, Dr Marshall Hall, noted that an advertisement for the post attracted in excess of 50 applicants from all over the world and the Committee eventually came up with an initial short-list of seven which was eventually whittled down to three candidates who were invited to be interviewed.

“As a result of the interview and subsequent discussions, the Committee arrived at a consensus on Sir Hilary as the preferred candidate. The Council expressed its gratitude to Dr Hall and the Committee for the efficient and expeditious manner in which their work was carried out,” the UWI said in a statement Saturday.

Sir Hilary, Vice-Chancellor Designate is well known regionally and extra-regionally and as Principal of the Cave Hill Campus, is currently the longest serving campus Principal, the UWI said.

At the international level Sir Hilary, a Barbadian, currently serves as a member of the UN Secretary-General’s Science Advisory Board on Sustainable Development, Chairman of the Caribbean Reparations Commission, Vice President of the International Task Force for the UNESCO Slave Route and adviser to the UN World Culture Report among other posts.