thedrifter
02-21-08, 05:03 AM
Published Feb 20, 2008 - 22:04:40 CST.
Hawkins returns to Vietnam for second time
Matt Clower, The Messenger
Troy University Chancellor Jack Hawkins, Jr. never intended to go back to Vietnam.
After his tour of duty leading a platoon of U.S. Marines during the Vietnam War, Hawkins left the southeast Asian nation fully intending to put his experiences there behind him.
"When I left Vietnam, I took everything that I had been issued, anything that I didn't need, and I left it there," Hawkins said. "I was ready to move on."
But times change, and now almost 40 years after he left the country as a Marine, Hawkins is making his second visit back as an educational partner.
Hawkins and other university officials will preside over commencement exercises at both Vietnam National University and Hanoi University of Technology - the first such commencement for students enrolled in degree programs Troy started six years ago. The graduates will receive Troy University diplomas either in business administration or computer science.
Hawkins called Troy's developing relationship with Vietnam an "interesting paradox."
"When we were at war, our goal was to inflict as much pain on the enemy as possible while experiencing as little as possible ourselves," Hawkins said.
Now, Troy University is helping to develop higher education in Vietnam.
"It's reflective of the changing times in which we live," Hawkins said. "I think it is a healthy step."
Hawkins first went to Vietnam as a Marine in 1968. He stayed for 13 months.
In 2002, Troy University sent its first team to Vietnam to forge partnerships with universities there. Hawkins said he was initially reluctant to go on that first trip.
"I was encouraged to go, and I finally agreed to it," Hawkins said. "When I got there, I was really intrigued."
He found a rapidly growing country where the signs of war were fading but not gone.
"You could still see the craters caused by bombings in fields around Hanoi. There was still evidence," Hawkins said.
During that first trip, the team from Troy visited the infamous Hanoi Hilton, and Hawkins went back to fields were his platoon had weathered fire fights.
"It was like being in a time-warp, but it also gave us a chance to step back and see Vietnam for it what it really is - a thriving country made up of good people," Hawkins said.
Hawkins said he is looking forward to watching the first group of Vietnamese Troy graduates receive their degrees.
"It will bring a sense of pride and of accomplishment," he said. "We are helping rebuild a great county that we once perceived as an enemy."
While on the same trip to southeast Asia, Troy University officials will also visit Cambodia on a mission to form partnerships in that country, as well.
Hawkins and others expect to sign an agreement of cooperation between Troy and Pannasastra University of Cambodia that will lead to formal educational ties between PUC and Troy.
Hawkins said Troy will be helping to rebuild the county's higher education system, which was destroyed by the civil war during the rule of the Khmer Rouge.
"It's important to link this trip to the tragedy of the Khmer Rouge and what happened there," Hawkins said. "Two-and-a-half million people were slaughtered, and they killed off the educated set - the teachers, the graduates. That left a wide, tragically empty portfolio of people."
Ellie
Hawkins returns to Vietnam for second time
Matt Clower, The Messenger
Troy University Chancellor Jack Hawkins, Jr. never intended to go back to Vietnam.
After his tour of duty leading a platoon of U.S. Marines during the Vietnam War, Hawkins left the southeast Asian nation fully intending to put his experiences there behind him.
"When I left Vietnam, I took everything that I had been issued, anything that I didn't need, and I left it there," Hawkins said. "I was ready to move on."
But times change, and now almost 40 years after he left the country as a Marine, Hawkins is making his second visit back as an educational partner.
Hawkins and other university officials will preside over commencement exercises at both Vietnam National University and Hanoi University of Technology - the first such commencement for students enrolled in degree programs Troy started six years ago. The graduates will receive Troy University diplomas either in business administration or computer science.
Hawkins called Troy's developing relationship with Vietnam an "interesting paradox."
"When we were at war, our goal was to inflict as much pain on the enemy as possible while experiencing as little as possible ourselves," Hawkins said.
Now, Troy University is helping to develop higher education in Vietnam.
"It's reflective of the changing times in which we live," Hawkins said. "I think it is a healthy step."
Hawkins first went to Vietnam as a Marine in 1968. He stayed for 13 months.
In 2002, Troy University sent its first team to Vietnam to forge partnerships with universities there. Hawkins said he was initially reluctant to go on that first trip.
"I was encouraged to go, and I finally agreed to it," Hawkins said. "When I got there, I was really intrigued."
He found a rapidly growing country where the signs of war were fading but not gone.
"You could still see the craters caused by bombings in fields around Hanoi. There was still evidence," Hawkins said.
During that first trip, the team from Troy visited the infamous Hanoi Hilton, and Hawkins went back to fields were his platoon had weathered fire fights.
"It was like being in a time-warp, but it also gave us a chance to step back and see Vietnam for it what it really is - a thriving country made up of good people," Hawkins said.
Hawkins said he is looking forward to watching the first group of Vietnamese Troy graduates receive their degrees.
"It will bring a sense of pride and of accomplishment," he said. "We are helping rebuild a great county that we once perceived as an enemy."
While on the same trip to southeast Asia, Troy University officials will also visit Cambodia on a mission to form partnerships in that country, as well.
Hawkins and others expect to sign an agreement of cooperation between Troy and Pannasastra University of Cambodia that will lead to formal educational ties between PUC and Troy.
Hawkins said Troy will be helping to rebuild the county's higher education system, which was destroyed by the civil war during the rule of the Khmer Rouge.
"It's important to link this trip to the tragedy of the Khmer Rouge and what happened there," Hawkins said. "Two-and-a-half million people were slaughtered, and they killed off the educated set - the teachers, the graduates. That left a wide, tragically empty portfolio of people."
Ellie