" The New Way Platform "
     Courtesy of the '06-'07 Exec. Board

Fellow CAMSANs, ladies and gentlemen,

The 21st Annual CAMSA-USA Convention has come and gone but as the dust settles and we try to re-focus on the future, it is worth appreciating the long way we've come during this time. I want to use this opportunity to commend Mr. Ngu Nyindem for his steadfast leadership of this unique Association in the last two years. We are greatly indebted to you for your unflinching dedication and service. We start a new era in our long history haven recorded numerous successes throughout the years. Along the way, however, we've experienced some difficult times in our Union, most notably the breakaway of CAMSA-LA from the umbrella of CAMSA-USA. I am cognizant of these shortcomings and hopeful that we will begin a new era of conflict resolution and collective progress.

Times have changed and with it an ever evolving social dynamics in our communities. We cannot help but notice the tremendous influx of Cameroonians into the US in the last couple of years and the numbers continue to increase. This is certainly good news for all of us but with it comes a certain degree of responsibility to the community at large. Many students that get to this country, somehow, lose their zeal for higher education. Others are sidetracked by the intricacies of life in this land, and still many others, because of a lack of choice and/or significant financial burden, join the bandwagon in churning money at least for the short-term to meet the many challenges plaguing their families back in the homeland. Needless to say, many personal decisions are made on a daily basis and unfortunately for us, the rate at which our students fall through the cracks and drop out of school is beyond alarming. Ours is an association of students, run by students and catering to the many needs of Cameroonian students in this country. For 21 years, CAMSA-USA has been the earpiece and mouthpiece of the thousands of Cameroonian students and we are privileged to be entrusted this enormous responsibility.

The changing demographics in our communities call for a "NEW WAY" of thinking. It calls us to re-strategize to meet the challenges we face, to build new bridges, forge new alliances and mend old wounds. It calls us to improve our networking strategies to better provide pertinent and timely resources to our fellow colleagues, to become better integrated in the professional establishment and pursue more professional career paths. It calls us to relinquish any tribalistic and sexist inclinations and to work for the betterment of the entire community. And above all, it calls for us to vigorously encourage our newly arrived brothers and sisters to continue to Dream Big, to seek-out guidance and counseling from ourselves and others that have experienced the realities of life and the potentials for success in this land of plenty.

To these ends, this Administration will spearhead educational programs to not only promote continued enrollment in undergraduate degree programs but also, and more importantly, to facilitate matriculation into various graduate programs, law schools, pharmacy schools, medical and nursing schools, and everything else you can think of. There are many CAMSANs who have completed many of these programs and we need their help in making these projects reality. There are many Cameroonians out there with budding law practices, medical practices, well-entrenched business ventures, and others involved in academic research, teaching, nursing, politics and policy. You all are NOT exempted from helping this new generation to succeed. In fact, your help is absolutely critical in bridging the gap between school and career. We need you all. This integration between students and established Cameroonian professionals is the only way, I think, to ensure the requisite transformation of our communities from predominantly blue-collar low paying jobs to more professional highly lucrative career paths.

CAMSA, in addition, is working on a program to recognize fellow students, parents, community activists, philanthropists and other donor organizations that are involved in promoting academic and professional excellence. We are cognizant of the numerous gestures of goodwill directed at our communities and we intend to promote such activities or, at the very least, recognize the impact it's having in our growth and development.

Many of you know that having the right INFORMATION at the right time is absolutely critical in many situations. CAMSA is embarking on an elaborate Networking program to unite ALL Cameroonian students and in-so-doing be able to provide timely information and other resources to students on available opportunities within the immediate community as well as internationally. It will also serve as a platform for us to share experiences, gather relevant data from students around the country and will also be a venue for us to discuss strategy. We've got some fellow CAMSANs using their expertise in Web Design and computing and working very hard to get our interactive website up and running. Hopefully in the next couple of months, we would have attained this important goal.

There are many other projects in the pipeline: we are planning on a nationwide book drive for our six universities, we are also working on a merit/need-based scholarship for primary/secondary/high school students in Cameroon and we look forward to working very closely with the Student governments at our six universities. These projects obviously require a substantial financial commitment and we will have numerous fundraising activities during the course of the year. We are not naïve enough to think we can make these all happen without a concerted effort from you all (our parents, sponsors, brothers, sisters, friends and colleagues). This is a collective effort. I really need your help. Please, get hold of me if you have an idea for me or simply have questions or just want to chat.

Many have told me time and again that I like to dream big! I certainly have no problems with this because it's my firm believe that LIFE loses its essence when we stop dreaming. I hope you all have dreams. BIG DREAMS.

Above all, I want you to hold me accountable during my tenure, to constructively criticize policies and projects and make it a habit to always chime in your two-cents on all discussion topics. I want you to start-up community projects, to give back to the community in every way possible, to strive to be the Beacon that others try to emulate, and to be the shining light wherever darkness looms. I want you to discuss actively the problems in our society today, and to crush the pervasive seeds of inequality that spreads like a wild fire within our communities. Every step we take, every move we make will determine where we go from here. I look forward to working with you all. Let's get this mission started!

Stay blessed and many thanks,


Denis A. Foretia
2006-07 National President, CAMSA-USA
dforetia@camsa-usa.org
Tel: (443) 804 2797.