My Valedictory Address
All right, all right... for those of you who wanted to read it... here it is. Keep in mind, it's way too short but I figured I got what I wanted to say out. Here it is:
Valedictory Address – 2005
Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen, parents, professors and fellow graduates. Today marks the beginning of a new rung in the ladder of life. Today, we celebrate our graduation.
PAUSE
Last term, I had the opportunity to participate in a brainstorming session on why employers should hire Arts students from the University of Waterloo. Let me share with you the adjectives that came up in that session. We came to the conclusion that Arts students are innovative, multi-talented, adaptable, socially adept, and flexible. We look for challenges and take the initiative to do more with our experiences.
Most importantly, Arts students are used to being immersed in changing environments. We are the adaptors to change and in turn, we ourselves are changed by our experiences. We are changed in the experiences of our University years; we are changed by the many lessons we learn in classrooms, in group settings and in work environments. But as Arts students, we are not scared of change. We have studied change through various programs in our Faculty that challenge our abilities to problem-solve, to relate to others and to be creative in our solutions. We are the thinkers, the decision-makers and the communicators.
PAUSE
Today, we celebrate completion and accomplishment. University is not only about getting a perfect GPA, it is about choice. From the beginning of every term, we are made aware that we have a choice to come to class, a choice to do the work and a choice to learn. Each and every one of us here has made that choice to commit to a life-long journey of learning. The education we leave with today will help guide us in the choices we make for the future.
The next step after graduation is one that is different for everyone. One thing we can be sure of is that it will be a time of change. At the University of Waterloo, we have developed our talents and ambitions through sleepless nights and close-readings of many, many books. Going out into the world, we should not be scared. Instead, we should be hopeful and confident because our flexibility as Arts students provides us with the luxury of being able to adapt to any environment we are placed in.
Hellen Keller once said, “To keep our faces toward change, and behave like free spirits in the presence of fate, is strength undefeatable.”
PAUSE
Graduates of 2005, I congratulate you. Let us face this upcoming year of change with the true spirit of the Arts students of the University of Waterloo, not forgetting that we have already survived a great feat in our educational careers.
School may be over for some of us, but it will never be the end of our education.
Valedictory Address – 2005
Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen, parents, professors and fellow graduates. Today marks the beginning of a new rung in the ladder of life. Today, we celebrate our graduation.
PAUSE
Last term, I had the opportunity to participate in a brainstorming session on why employers should hire Arts students from the University of Waterloo. Let me share with you the adjectives that came up in that session. We came to the conclusion that Arts students are innovative, multi-talented, adaptable, socially adept, and flexible. We look for challenges and take the initiative to do more with our experiences.
Most importantly, Arts students are used to being immersed in changing environments. We are the adaptors to change and in turn, we ourselves are changed by our experiences. We are changed in the experiences of our University years; we are changed by the many lessons we learn in classrooms, in group settings and in work environments. But as Arts students, we are not scared of change. We have studied change through various programs in our Faculty that challenge our abilities to problem-solve, to relate to others and to be creative in our solutions. We are the thinkers, the decision-makers and the communicators.
PAUSE
Today, we celebrate completion and accomplishment. University is not only about getting a perfect GPA, it is about choice. From the beginning of every term, we are made aware that we have a choice to come to class, a choice to do the work and a choice to learn. Each and every one of us here has made that choice to commit to a life-long journey of learning. The education we leave with today will help guide us in the choices we make for the future.
The next step after graduation is one that is different for everyone. One thing we can be sure of is that it will be a time of change. At the University of Waterloo, we have developed our talents and ambitions through sleepless nights and close-readings of many, many books. Going out into the world, we should not be scared. Instead, we should be hopeful and confident because our flexibility as Arts students provides us with the luxury of being able to adapt to any environment we are placed in.
Hellen Keller once said, “To keep our faces toward change, and behave like free spirits in the presence of fate, is strength undefeatable.”
PAUSE
Graduates of 2005, I congratulate you. Let us face this upcoming year of change with the true spirit of the Arts students of the University of Waterloo, not forgetting that we have already survived a great feat in our educational careers.
School may be over for some of us, but it will never be the end of our education.
posted by Mandy Lam at
10:53 AM
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