With daylight hours short and cold weather well upon us, it’s once again time to bid farewell to a phenomenal group of Hawkeyes. While most of our students are looking forward to a well-earned winter break, our fall graduates are instead considering where the next chapter of their lives will take them. Fitting, then, that the days will soon be lengthening: With a group of new graduates entering into it, the wider world brightens.
What is it that Hawkeyes take with them when they venture forth? I think of a set of core values and principles that flourish on our campus: compassion, integrity, curiosity, diligence, and generosity.
Compassion. I see it taught to brave and eager students in the Colleges of Nursing, Pharmacy, Medicine, Dentistry, and Public Health who will go on to care for Iowans and people around the world in their time of need. It’s an example modeled every day by all those at University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics.
Integrity. I see this passed on in the College of Law, where future public servants are learning their craft. I see it in the Tippie College of Business, where economic innovators and entrepreneurs are taught to approach business ethically.
Curiosity. Here, I think of the Graduate College and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, filled with budding researchers working in fields as diverse as astrophysics and library science. I think of the College of Engineering, where those who will build our future are learning their trade.
Diligence. Diligent students, staff, and educators are to be found all over campus—and beyond. From those pursuing the unique courses and programs offered by University College to the far-flung Hawkeyes participating in Distance and Online Education miles from Iowa City, the University of Iowa community is responsible, conscientious, and knows how to get things done.
Generosity. Hawkeye generosity shines brightly in the contributions that our alumni, the ranks of which our fall graduates are soon to join, make to their alma mater, their own communities, and the world at large. From financial support to the UI’s important programs to helming projects that literally build bridges between people, Hawkeyes are a generous bunch.
Graduates, I’m proud of all you’ve accomplished and all you’re about to accomplish. You have the opportunity to take all of this positivity out into the world with you; as Mahatma Gandhi so eloquently said, “You must be the change you want to see in the world.”
Remember these principles. Remember what you’ve learned at Iowa, and build upon it. Now, go get involved in your next community and lead it to the future.