The Hasan Kalyoncu University 2023 Graduation Ceremony was held at the university’s Performing Arts Centre, which seats 3,000 people. Alongside Minister of Youth and Sports Osman Aşkın Bak, the ceremony was also attended by Governor of Gaziantep Kemal Çeber and Mayor of Gaziantep Metropolitan Municipality Fatma Şahin, while Cemal Kalyoncu, Chairman of the Hasan Kalyoncu University Board of Trustees, stated that, with this academic year, they have produced more than 16,000 graduates in total.
At the ceremony, where 1,578 students received their diplomas, Cemal Kalyoncu, Chairman of the Hasan Kalyoncu University Board of Trustees, and Rector Prof. Dr. Türkay Dereli each gave a speech addressing the graduating students. At the ceremony, which was broadcast live on Hasan Kalyoncu University’s social media accounts, 1,578 students experienced the joy of graduation.
Republic of Türkiye Minister of Youth and Sports Osman Aşkın Bak, speaking at the Hasan Kalyoncu University Graduation Ceremony, said: “After I graduated, I also kept chasing my dreams. I went abroad. There were no scholarships in those days. In England I worked as a waiter in restaurants and worked as a car mechanic. Our goal was to study, to learn and to serve this country. We worked for that and came this far. When you graduate, you too should keep chasing your dreams. Work to learn languages. Try to be entrepreneurial. Increase your dialogue with the people around you. Make friends in harmony and in affection, and collect friends. Build a circle. We are a young country. The Republic of Türkiye is in its hundredth year, but we have a lot to do. We need you, the young people, for a developing, growing and strong Türkiye.”
Minister Osman Aşkın Bak continued his words as follows: “I remember Mr Hasan Kalyoncu, the Founder of Hasan Kalyoncu University, with mercy. We too are witnesses to the scholarships he gave in our student years. Mr Cemal Kalyoncu is likewise an exemplary person… Together with this university, the Kalyoncu family serves the Republic of Türkiye, Türkiye’s education, its technology, and Gaziantep, the city where they grew up and were raised. Today, on the 15th anniversary of Hasan Kalyoncu University, they are graduating 1,578 students.”
WE WILL ALWAYS KEEP OUR STUDENTS ALIVE IN OUR HEARTS
Cemal Kalyoncu, Chairman of the Hasan Kalyoncu University Board of Trustees, who addressed the students at the graduation ceremony, said: “We are graduating our students in the shadow of the great sorrow we feel for our dear fellow students who lost their lives in the 6 February earthquakes, and for the losses in their families. Losing 30 of our students and graduates in this disaster multiplied our grief even further. On this occasion, I once again wish them God’s mercy, and I offer my condolences to those of us left behind. I offer my respect and gratitude to our university, our holding company, our students and our teachers for their extraordinary work during the earthquake.”
IN 15 YEARS WE HAVE EDUCATED 12,730 STUDENTS ON SCHOLARSHIPS
Underlining that they continue to grow despite everything, Kalyoncu said: “This year we are celebrating our university’s 15th year. In our 15th year, by opening one faculty and one department, we have reached a total of 9 faculties and 34 departments. This year, by graduating another 1,578 of our young people, we are seeing them off to their dreams and their tomorrows. The total number of graduates whose lives we have touched in 15 years has reached 16,872. We are one of the universities that gives the most scholarships. In 15 years, we are a foundation that has educated 12,730 of its students on scholarships and still has 4,587 scholarship students. I hope that graduating in the 100th year of our Republic, in the Century of Türkiye, brings you luck. In the 100th year of our Republic, I expect you to add value to the century of Türkiye for a strong Türkiye and to take on important responsibilities. As the Kalyon Holding family of 35,000 people, we are always by your side. Although graduation contains a farewell, you will always be a member of this school and a member of this family, and we will always be proud of you.”
YOU ARE NOW READY TO WRITE NEW STORIES IN YOUR OWN LIVES
Speaking at the ceremony, Hasan Kalyoncu University Rector Prof. Dr. Türkay Dereli stated that they will keep alive forever the memory of the 30 students and graduates who died in the earthquakes of 6 February. Dereli continued: “Today you are now ready to write new stories in your own lives; by overcoming every challenge you encounter, you will be a source of hope foreveryone who needs you. With your knowledge and skills, you will produce effective solutions to the needs of society and make great contributions to the development of our country. In this new period of your life too, always be yourselves and believe in yourselves. You have graduated at a time when the world is being rebuilt, just when new stories will be written in the world. Believe me, while writing your own story you can also influence, and even change, the world.”
1,578 STUDENTS THREW THEIR CAPS
After the speeches, certificates of achievement and awards were presented to Selenay Yıldırım, Dilan Bilbay and Aylin Akaslan, the students who ranked in the top three at Hasan Kalyoncu University, by Minister of Youth and Sports Osman Aşkın Bak, Hasan Kalyoncu University Board of Trustees Chairman Cemal Kalyoncu and Hasan Kalyoncu University Board of Trustees Deputy Chairman Haluk Kalyoncu. While the students who ranked in the top three in each faculty and department were invited to the podium to receive their diplomas, a total of 1,578 students experienced the excitement of graduation at the end of their successful academic lives. After the enthusiastic graduation ceremony, Cemal Kalyoncu presented gifts to Minister of Youth and Sports Osman Aşkın Bak, in keeping with the meaning and importance of the day.
News: Çetin KARABIYIK /HKU
