For the second consecutive year, the graduation ceremony of the Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra on its campus in Santiago (PUCMM STI) was the ideal platform for the delivery of the Therrestra 2020 Excellence Award.

A big surprise.

Prior to the award ceremony, engineer Hugo Pérez Ovalles, president of Grupo Therrestra, offered a few words at the graduation ceremony and recognized the work of the finalist students for their profiles and excellent performance. The finalists for student merit were the young Vanessa Capín Medina and Jorge Eduardo Guzmán, both students of the Civil Engineering career.

To the surprise of the award contestants and all those attending the graduation ceremony held on Saturday, January 25, the 2020 Award of Excellence took an unexpected turn.

When announcing the winner of the recognition, engineer Pérez Ovalles communicated that, due to the achievements and trajectory of the two finalist students, it was impossible for him to choose a winner, generating doubt in the audience. A few seconds later, he himself clarified that, breaking with the agreement and in favor of the students, this year he had come to the conclusion that both finalists deserved to be recognized. Formally announcing that the two students would receive the award, benefiting from the scholarship that would release them from the educational credit corresponding to their studies.

With the delivery of the awards, Therrestra rectified its commitment to Dominican education and its interest in providing support to institutions that, such as the Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra, encourage graduates such as the engineer Capín Medina and the engineer Guzmán to give their best of themselves in all areas of their lives, demonstrating that academic excellence pays off and is highly valued in professional practice.