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Mary Virginia Terry received an honorary degree during undergraduate Commencement. Taking part in the hooding ceremony are (from left): Robert Sumichrast, dean of the Terry College of Business, Terry, Provost Arnett C. Mace Jr. and UGA President Michael F. Adams. (Photo by Robert Newcomb)
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Words of wisdom
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Commencement speakers offer new grads encouragement in tough economic times
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By Sara Freeland
freeland@uga.edu |
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Above left: U.S. Rep. Jack Kingston addresses some the estimated 3,700 undergraduates eligible to receive degrees May 9. Above right: Brittany Lee, a member of UGA’s Class of 2009, celebrates during Commencement. (Photos by Paul Efland)
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U.S. Rep. Jack Kingston of Savannah told UGA’s Class of 2009 that they are not the first graduating class to see hard times. At the May 9 commencement ceremony in Sanford Stadium, he spoke about UGA’s history and the importance of learning from the past.
“We are living in challenging times, but the more we know about the past, the more optimism and security we have in our own futures,” he said. “These are tough times in which to graduate, but you will be better for it.”
He spoke about the tribulations UGA faced during the Civil War, football being outlawed in Georgia after a star player was killed in a game and the African-American section present at UGA football games in the 1960s.
Quoting the celebrated
18th century English author Samuel Johnson, Kingston said, “We should always be mindful of our forefathers and future generations. But more importantly we should remember the sacrifices on behalf of the former on behalf of the latter. We owe it to ourselves to know who did what to get us here.”
In closing he told graduates that success was a culture and that they should keep up with each other.
“It still boils down to you, your work ethic and your desire to succeed,” he said.
Kingston, who received an economics degree from UGA in 1978, is a member of the House Appropriations Committee.
Mary Catherine McLean, a history major from Moultrie, was the student speaker. She spoke about the successes of student organizations’ contributions to society and offered encouragement for new graduates in the job market.
“We as UGA students have already begun to affect positive change on local, national and international levels,” she said, citing relief efforts after Hurricane Katrina, UGA’s response to the Virginia Tech shootings and fundraisers for national philanthropies.
“As members of the Class of 2009, we should not fear the future, but look forward to the challenges that await us,” she also said. “We have the opportunity to face adversity head on and utilize the skills we’ve acquired at UGA to continue to succeed.”
An estimated 3,700 undergraduates were eligible to receive bachelor’s degrees at the ceremony.
Also at the ceremony, Mary Virginia Terry of Jacksonville, Fla., received the honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree. Terry and her late husband, Herman, have been major supporters of UGA for 55 years and are namesakes of the Terry College of Business.
At the graduate ceremony, an estimated 1,155 candidates for master’s, doctoral and specialist in education degrees were eligible to receive degrees. |
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