W&M graduates encouraged to live lives of integrity, service
As they begin a new chapter in their lives, the members of William & Mary’s Class of 2013 should seek to live lives of integrity, service, patience and humility, said FBI Director Robert S. Mueller on Sunday.
“We must all find ways to contribute to something bigger than ourselves,” Mueller told nearly 2,000 graduates. “We must cultivate patience, each and every day. We must maintain a sense of humility. And most importantly, we must never, ever sacrifice our integrity.”
Mueller served as the keynote speaker for William & Mary’s 2013 Commencement ceremony in William & Mary Hall. He received an honorary degree at the event, along with Colonial Williamsburg President Colin G. Campbell, and W&M alumnus Warren W. Buck III M.S.’70, Ph.D.’76, a prominent physicist and chancellor emeritus of the University of Washington-Bothell.
William & Mary Chancellor and former Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates ’65 also spoke at the event, drawing laughter from the crowd by describing his Chancellor’s regalia as “a unique blending of medieval academic tradition and Lady Gaga.”
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Addressing the graduates, Gates praised them for their hard work.
“You have now survived one of the most rigorous educational experiences in the world,” Gates said. “In doing so, you’ve had the experience of not only of a first-rate academic education, but the very special opportunity to be part of an institution rooted in the very earliest history and fundamental governing principles of the United States.”
Integrity, service, patience
Mueller drew on his experience with his three “families” – his wife and two daughters, the Marine Corps and the FBI – for inspiration for his speech. No matter where life may take the graduates or what “families” they may find themselves part of, integrity is vital, Mueller said.
“In the end, it is not only what we do, but how we do it,” he said. “Regardless of your chosen career, you are only as good as your word.”
Integrity is also a core value at William & Mary, he said.
“William & Mary was the first college in the country to have a student-run honor system,” he said. “That honor system, and the community of trust it enables, rests on one precept – and that is integrity. Your professional and your personal success will rest on that same precept.”
Mueller went on to tout the importance of service, reflecting on his time in the Marine Corps and his work with the FBI.
“The way in which you choose to serve does not matter, only that you work to better your country and your community,” he said. “Each of you must determine in what way you can best serve others, a way that will leave you believing that your time has been well spent.”
Also stressing the importance of patience and humility, Mueller closed by telling the graduates that, “if we do each of these things, we will have the best opportunity to be successful – personally and professionally – and our time will indeed have been time well spent.”
Awards and honors
Approximately 1,290 undergraduates and 638 graduate students received degrees as part of the day’s events. Several students, faculty, staff and community members were also individually recognized at the ceremony.
Devin Braun, a member of the Class of 2012 who received his master’s degree on Sunday, served as the student commencement speaker, emphasizing the importance of doing good without thought to whether it will garner notice.
“So many people have changed the world for the better without the world knowing who they were,” he said.
Brian Rabe ’13, who graduated with a perfect 4.0 GPA and degrees in biology and chemistry, received the Lord Botetourt Medal. Established in 1772 “for the honor and encouragement of literary merit,” the medal is presented to a graduating senior who has “attained the greatest distinction in scholarship.”
The James Frederic Carr Memorial Cup was presented to Michael Schilling ’13, who graduated with a bachelor’s in linguistics and mathematics. The cup is presented annually to the graduating senior "who best combines the qualities of character, scholarship and leadership."
Samuel Lake, who earned his doctorate W&M’s Virginia Institute of Marine Science, took home this year’s Thatcher Prize for Excellence, which is presented annually to a graduate or professional student of outstanding scholarship, service and character.
Two people received this year’s Thomas Ashley Graves Jr. Award for Sustained Excellence in Teaching: Professor of Mathematics Larry Leemis and Professor of Education Megan Tschannen-Moran.
The Algernon Sydney Sullivan awards, which are presented to two members of the graduating class and one person who has “a close working relationship” with the College, were presented to Bailey Clair Rose ‘13, Kevin Norman Barrett ’13 and Associate Vice President for Development Earl T. Granger.
This year’s Duke Award recipient, Administrative Staff Specialist Ruth Hines, was also recognized at Commencement. The Duke Award is presented annually to staff member who exhibits exemplary service and dedication to William & Mary.
Sunday’s Commencement ceremony followed a weekend full of activities, including the Donning of the Kente, the Service of Celebration, the Candlelight Ceremony and an ROTC commissioning ceremony. Graduates received their degrees at departmental ceremonies following Sunday’s afternoon’s main Commencement ceremony.
An anchored life
Before beach balls were launched into the crowd at the end of the ceremony, President Taylor Reveley closed by reflecting on the importance of change to successful people – and institutions like William & Mary.
“Simply put, to live life meaningfully is to change,” he said. “This takes, among other virtues, a capacity to think rigorously, an ability to tackle problems creatively, and an openness to ideas and cultures different from our own. I believe William & Mary prepares its students for rigorous thinking, creative problem solving, and the capacity to keep expanding intellectual and cultural horizons.”
But it is also crucial to know when not to change, said Reveley.
“We need anchors to steady us, especially when the wind howls and the rain pours,” he said. “Each of us has to forge our own anchors if they are to be powerful enough for us personally to hold us when times get tough.”
The W&M president suggested four anchors: integrity (echoing Mueller’s sentiments), a capacity to give and receive love, a willingness to serve (again, echoing Mueller), and belief in something greater than ourselves.
“So, graduates, expect to remain under constant construction
and welcome the opportunities that come with that recreation,” he said. “But
also know what not to change even as everything else does. Forge powerful
personal anchors to hold you true to your core commitments even during times of
great change.
“And, of course, beyond the four anchors that I just mentioned, there is one
other anchor worth mentioning -- a lifelong tie to your alma mater, the
magnificent College of William & Mary. The College will care about you
always, and you should care about it.”
