University honours EFR with Civilitate

On the first day of the academic year, EFR was presented with the Civilitate by rector Huib Pols. The student association received the honour mainly for organising visits by big names in global politics, like UN secretary general Ban Ki-Moon last April.

Surprised and honoured

It came as a complete surprise to the EFR Board, both old and new, when the rector took the floor prior to EFR’s introductory talk to first-year economics students. “We knew that something was going to happen, but not what,” said president Sebastiaan Frommé, who will officially take over the chair from Rik Bross next week. The committee members were therefore delighted, honoured and proud with this award.

Ban Ki-Moon and Desmond Tutu

On behalf of the Executive Board, the rector praised the work of the EFR and its ability to ‘establish contacts between students and the public and private sectors’. Ban Ki-Moon’s visit to the campus for the World Leader Cycle last April and Desmond Tutu’s arrival at the end of 2014 at the invitation of EFR were particular reasons why the Economics faculty asked the Executive Board to award the Civilitate to the EFR.

Last Civilitate awarded in 2009

The Civilitate was last awarded in 2009. In the past it was usually presented to Olympic medal winners who were studying at the university or students who had devoted themselves to society during their studies. Read here about previous recipients of the Civilitate.