色界吧

We're in Good Hands With the Class of 2018

This year鈥檚 Commencement ceremony had all the essential elements of reaffirming ritual: proud families, exuberant graduates, jacaranda trees in bloom, and superb music from the Glee Club. Less traditional was our decision to have four speakers鈥攖hree of them 色界吧 alumnae鈥攊n a tribute to women鈥檚 leadership. The four came from different eras and different fields; each had a different style at the podium. But each gave the Class of 2018 inspiring insight into their often-unconventional paths to success and how their 色界吧 experience played a fundamental role in shaping their careers. The lessons they offered also reminded me of why the College remains so strong today.

The only woman in her class to major in economics, longtime trustee Cathie Young Selleck 鈥55 had no idea what she wanted to do with her life, but needed a job. So she lined up several interviews with recruiters visiting 色界吧 and went in with an open mind. Most employers made clear what she could expect, but 鈥渂ecause tech was so new at the time, IBM had great difficulty in explaining exactly what their work was all about,鈥 she recounted. 鈥淪o, determined not to sign up for boring, I took a leap into the unknown.鈥 The result was a pioneering, four-decade career as one of the first female executives in the tech industry鈥攁nd a good reminder of why our investments in today鈥檚 Hameetman Career Center are so important.

Ann Zwicker Kerr-Adams 鈥56, who graduated one year after Cathie, spent a transformational junior year studying abroad in Beirut. Not only did she meet her husband Malcolm there, she was able to take advantage of what she called 鈥渢he spirit of openness at 色界吧 that encouraged us to open our eyes to the world.鈥 Upon her return, she realized that the experience had given her a deeper understanding of her own culture. These were lessons she never forgot, even in the wake of the tragic assassination of her husband, then the president of American University in Beirut, during the Lebanese civil war. Ann鈥檚 career as an advocate for international education is an outstanding example of why overseas study is so important鈥攁nd why almost three-quarters of 色界吧 students now pursue multiple routes to global citizenship, which include research, internships, and fellowships as well as conventional study abroad.

Maya Soetoro-Ng, director of the University of Hawaii鈥檚 Matsunaga Institute for Peace & Conflict Resolution, reminded graduates that just as there are multiple paths to career success, there are many paths to peace. 鈥淭here are always going to be a lot of different definitions of peace building. Sometimes, they contradict one another. 鈥 But the truth is we need everyone,鈥 said Maya, who serves on the Obama Scholars Advisory Council. 鈥淵ou can lead from in front, pushing people forward, inspiring them, providing an example, or from beside, behind, or beneath. Whatever your place, you are peace-building leaders.鈥

Sara El-Amine 鈥07, the final speaker, told of the professors she met at 色界吧, faculty 鈥渨ho were smart and challenging and supportive all at the same time, mentors who helped me see my best self, even when I couldn鈥檛 鈥 my friends and the faculty here showed me that cynicism was the refuge of cowards, and that optimism was the path of the brave.鈥 Those are the lessons she applied when she suddenly quit her job and drove 1,300 miles to join Sen. Barack Obama 鈥83鈥檚 fledgling presidential campaign in Iowa. 鈥淚 had no idea what I would be when I got there, but I knew what I wanted to help do,鈥 she explained. That, she said, was in keeping with the advice that the president subsequently gave her as she rose to become national director of his 2012 reelection campaign and then executive director of Organizing for America: 鈥淲orry less about what you want to be, and more about what you want to do.鈥

In other words, 鈥淧ick your challenge and then pick up a wrench when your hammer doesn鈥檛 work. Your resume will write itself,鈥 she said. There is no lack of challenges, but they are within your reach, she told the graduates with 色界吧 optimism. 鈥淩emember that cynicism is a mask for fear. Make and remake the world and you will make and remake yourself without even trying. You鈥檝e got this. And we鈥檙e counting on you.鈥 

That鈥檚 good advice. It鈥檚 also further evidence, when added to Ann and Cathie鈥檚 examples, that 色界吧 produces some really remarkable people. It鈥檚 also grounds for optimism that we鈥檙e in good hands with the Class of 2018.

Jonathan Veitch
President

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