JUSTICE SANDRA DAY O’CONNOR
First woman on the U.S. Supreme Court
Centre College (Danville, KY)
“A single generation of public servants cannot be expected to bridge the gaps of inequality and injustice, nor span the chasms of our nation’s critical needs. The bridge to Brown [the landmark case of Brown v. Board of Education] was not built overnight, and Brown itself hardly eradicated racial injustice in our nation. But if we focus our energies on sharing ideas, finding solutions, and using what is right with America to remedy what is wrong with it, we can make a difference. Our nation needs bridges, and bridges are built only by those, like Justice Harlan and Chief Justice Vinson, who look to the future and dedicate themselves to helping others. Commit yourselves today, as you embark on your new life as a college graduate, to being bridge-builders. Our nation needs you, and those who cross the bridges you build will thank you.”
TIM RUSSERT
TV anchorman and moderator for “Meet the Press”
American University (Washington, DC)
“For the good of all of us, please build a future we all can be proud of. You can do it, but please get busy. You only have 2,300 weeks before you’re eligible for Social Security. Have a wonderful life. Take care of one another. Be careful tonight. And, for the rest of your life … work hard, laugh often and keep your honor.”
HILLARY CLINTON
Senator, former first lady
Agnes Scott College (Atlanta, GA)
“You cannot have democracy if half the people are shut out. You cannot have freedom if half the people are told they are inferior. You cannot have peace when half the people can . . . decide how the other half lives …There has never been a time in human history when it has been better to be a young woman alive and living in America.”
LECH WALESA
Nobel Peace Prize winner
Lewis & Clark College (Portland, OR)
“The end of the Cold War opened up a totally new era, the era of Earth. Now, globalization makes borders obsolete and nations must work together to protect and share the planet’s natural resources. So, enter it with much courage and much hope.”
OPRAH WINFREY
TV personality/actress
Salem College (Winston-Salem, NC)
“… And, so when trouble comes, say thank you. Say thank you and ask this question: Not ‘Why me?’ but ‘What are you here to teach me? What are you here to teach me?’ Learn the lesson and move on. And in the words of Dr. Angelou, when you learn, teach; when you get, give. And what I have learned: Keep on giving and keep on giving, and you will know the meaning of an enriched and fulfilled life. There’s a calling on your life. The wonder and the beauty of it stops me cold.”
BENJAMIN BURTT
Award-winning sound editor who worked on “Star Wars,” “E.T.,” “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” and “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade”
Allegheny College (Meadville, PA)
“A hero is measured by his conduct one on one with each person he encounters. You can rise to the task anywhere you go. You can be a hero over and over again by putting others’ needs before yourself. Encourage someone. Thank someone. Take the trouble to know each of your neighbors and coworkers by their first names. Pray for our leaders and nation… Serve with dedication no matter where you find yourself. Sacrifice and you will find joy and happiness in that action alone.”
CHRIS MATTHEWS
Host of MSNBC’s “Hardball”
Arcadia University (Glenside, PA)
Offering three rules of success: “One, to win the game you’ve got to be at the table. Two, ask. Three, ideas and ideals – what you think and what you value – count.”
BOB KEESHAN
TV personality Captain Kangaroo
McDaniel College (Westminster, MD)
“One last thing I ask of you and that is kindness. One thing that I spoke to you about when you were very young was kindness, gentleness, to be good to one another. That golden rule that so many kids laugh at today is critical to our survival as a society. If we become truly the “in your face” society, we will have no future as a society. So, please, whatever you do, do well, but also do it with kindness and with gentleness.”
DR. JOE PULLIS
Endowed Professor of Marketing and Analysis
Louisiana Tech University (Rushton, LA)
Capitalizing on the title of a Lee Ann Womack song, Dr. Pullis told graduates: “Please, don’t sit this one out. When you get the choice to sit it out or dance, I hope you dance. Oh, how I hope you dance. For it is you, the young adults of this planet, who are the trustees of posterity.”
