2008 Woodie Awards
Graduation speakers address hope, personal dreams
Amber Chemam
Issue date: 5/15/07 Section: Front Page
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Senior communications and international studies major Sarah Clarke will address her fellow graduates on the subject of hope because she said she felt that the it was one of UST's most important but least spoken of values.
"St. Thomas is a Catholic university, and I believe that we focus a great deal on faith and on charity," Clarke said. "In that little triumvirate of virtues, hope is kind of the stepchild, but I think that it's hope that gives us the power for faith and charity, to actually make a difference in this world."
Clarke said that her message to fellow gradates was to retain the values that they received through the University and utilize them in their future.
"I believe that St. Thomas is a place that values idealism, and I hope that I'll be able to encourage my fellow graduates to keep on believing, in a world that's sometimes so cynical."
A committee comprised of communications professor Livia Bornigia, Associate Director of Admissions Lee Holm and Vice President for Academic Affairs Steve Sutton, chose Clarke. All graduating graduate and undergraduate students were eligible to submit an application and a portion of their speech, according to Bornigia, and were narrowed down to a group of finalists. She added that the ability to relate to the student body, as a whole, was a major characteristic that the committee looked for in the candidates' speeches.
"The kind of things that we're looking for are, of course, not just the ability to write a speech and to use proper language, but also things that would be representative not just of the person addressing the graduating class, but also of the students themselves," Bornigia said. "So, someone that would have a universal message that would be reflective of our values here at the University and, at the same time, we were looking for originality and an ability to express things that everyone can relate to in a unique way."
Bornigia said that Clarke's speech met all of the requirements and stood out from the beginning of the selection process, resulting in a unanimous decision to make her this year's speaker.
"She's definitely what we wish to attract to this University and a very good representation of everything that is good about the school," Bornigia said. "I think her speech is going to be something to look forward to."
Texas' Solicitor Gen. Ted Cruz, who has written more that 50 U.S. Supreme Court briefs, will present the address "Passion and Idealism: Finding Your Dream and Making a Difference."
Texas Attorney general Greg Abbott appointed Cruz in 2003 as the first Hispanic solicitor general in Texas, and at the time of his appointment, was also the youngest solicitor general in the U.S. He also serves an adjunct law professor at the University of Texas at Austin.
The commencement ceremony is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. and is to be preceded by the Graduation Mass and Reception, to begin at 7 p.m. on May 18.