2021 Valedictorian: Andrew Caza from Languages and Cultures

Vanier College is pleased to announce that Languages and Cultures graduate, Andrew Caza, is the 2021 Vanier College Valedictorian. Given that Vanier College is not holding a live ceremony due to Covid 19, Andrew will address his fellow graduates as part of a special video prepared to celebrate the 2021 Vanier College graduating class.

Andrew impressed the selection committee with his exuberance and positive attitude, his love of Vanier and his unbridled joy at graduating from the Languages and Cultures program. That is quite an outcome given that Andrew’s college start was not very auspicious. He withdrew from the first Cegep he attended for medical reasons then switched to Vanier and “For three years I immersed myself in an amazing program with fantastic teachers. I worked tirelessly, not for grades, but for a growing interest in a program which was fueled by all my teachers’ obvious passion for the material they teach.”

“My three years at Vanier have been the best in my life and they went by in the blink of an eye. It’s also easy to make friends at Vanier.  Even when you first walk into a new class you can start talking to the students around you and you immediately start to make connections. Add to that, my Languages and Cultures Program was truly a pleasure!"

When the pandemic closed down much of Montreal, Andrew maintained his good spirits. “My positivity is a trait I carried into the classroom. I tried to participate as much as possible and show my teachers that I was not only interested in the material, but grateful for their work as well. In spite of the pandemic and having classes online, we still connected with one another in our classes.”

Andrew could never have predicted where he would be today. “I’m a wee Irish boy who grew up in Ste-Thérèse, surrounded by Francophones, yet not able to speak French. If you’d told me ten years ago I would be where I am now, Vanier’s 2021 Valedictorian, I would never have believed you. Today I can speak French, I have learned about French culture and I enjoy it, and I have French friends. All that is thanks to Vanier and my program of studies. I not only learned other languages, but I also learned about other cultures, other ways of thinking and of seeing the world, other ways of being.  I could never have imagined being where I am now or being who I am now.”

Congratulations to Andrew Caza, the 2021 Vanier College Valedictorian.