Before Columbia, graduation ceremonies were meaningless exercises. In elementary and high schools, everyone who kept their warm bodies in their seats for the required time was guaranteed a spot at the commencement party. So I questioned the need to observe the occasion, since little need be done to merit the privilege. Columbia was the first school at which I realized that I had to EARN the right to graduate. And I thought that graduation was a nip and tuck proposition all the way through my last final exam. So for the first time I could see commencement as a tribute to something that we all had achieved. Standing on Low Plaza with the other graduates was one of the most memorable occasions of my life.

I don't know how it works now, but back then the featured address was given by the President of the University. This aroused resentment among many, who cited the distinguished speakers many other campuses of lesser light attracted. But I felt it to be highly appropriate. What better way to leave but with some parting words from the person who had overseen the life of the University during my stay and who knew better than any outsider the issues we as a community had faced? Rather than condemning ourselves for being different, I felt that we should be celebrating ourselves for being unique. It is my continued hope that Columbia continues to search for and nurture the things about itself that other institutions cannot duplicate, as that is how it will not only survive, but thrive.