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Governor John P. de Jongh, Jr. extended his deepest condolences today to the family and students of University of the Virgin Islands Professor Gene Emanuel, an educator and scholar who challenged his students by asking them to challenge conventional thinking.
“In the death of Gene Emanuel, the Virgin Islands has lost an outstanding professor and a man who has been credited with representing the cultural consciousness of the University of the Virgin Islands where he served as a faculty member since 1981. He was most recently the Associate Professor of Humanities at
UVI.
Professor Emanuel's research and academic studies greatly illuminated our territory's cultural identity and the proud legacy of Caribbean peoples as a whole. He brought the same energy devoted to his research into the classroom, where his charismatic style and deep reservoir of knowledge lit an intellectual fire in thousands of UVI students over the years, inspiring them to learn through great literature about the experiences of the African peoples in diaspora, de Jongh added.
“For three decades, Professor Emanuel guided the intellectual development of our territory's finest young scholars, helping them discover their voice, their passion for learning and their awareness of the great issues we face as a people,” de Jongh said, adding, Professor Emanuel's expertise and vast knowledge in his field was recognized when he was selected as a delegate to the African Union's African Diaspora Technical Committee of Experts earlier this year in Pretoria, South Africa.
“To know Professor Emanuel was to know his untiring passion for Afro-Caribbean history and culture. Not only was he an outstanding and sought-after professor, he was a mentor to many who sought a higher education at the University of the Virgin Islands. For many years, Professor Emanuel attempted to increase the public’s awareness of the role of UVI in the community through his weekly radio program on WSTA Radio. “Up to last Saturday afternoon, Professor Emanuel spoke of the University and its many programs and course offerings on the radio show. His voice was always one of depth and wisdom, he was truly an advocate for UVI and his numerous contributions will be sorely missed,” de Jongh said.
“My wife, Cecile and I were saddened to learn of Professor Emanuel's passing, but we take solace in knowing that he lives on in generations of Virgin Islanders who were inspired by his teachings and touched by his generosity of spirit,” de Jongh said.
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