GWU Commencement Ceremony on the National Mall

This morning, I walked down Capitol Hill to witness a high school friend graduate at the George Washington University’s Commencement Ceremony on the National Mall.  Perfectly situated between the Washington Monument and the Capitol, an estimated 25,000 were in attendance to watch the GW class of 2012 graduate.  The experience was a fascinating one and was put together excellently.  I am glad I was able to be a part of it even if I myself am not a George Washington Colonial.

The two keynote speeches came from two men receiving honorary degrees from GWU and service was the theme of the day.  Carlos Slim, the world’s richest man and also the target of several insignificant protests near the ceremony, gave the crowd something to really think about in his speech.  “When you give, do not expect to receive,” Slim said. “God forgives our sins, but not our services.”  These words resonated with the crowd, especially after hearing an undergraduate student, Noreen Kassam, say “Let us begin by impacting the lives of those who come after us... Take what you have learned to change the world,” Kassam said.  NBC nightly news anchor, Brian Williams, also received his honorary degree and treated the crowd to a tale of his distinguished, and very amusing, career as a journalist. 

Even though today was not my commencement day, the George Washington University’s ceremony for its graduates got me thinking about what mine will be like next year.  As I am graduating a full year ahead of schedule, it will be me in the cap and gown listening to more words of advice next May alongside thousands of my fellow Buckeyes.  While I will most certainly spend this upcoming year making sure that I fondly remember my time at Ohio State, the thoughts that will really take hold in my mind will be the ones of service that Kassam, Slim, and Williams spoke of today.  What have I contributed to my peers, friends, and family?  What will I contribute to the world?  I consider myself and the other Glenn Fellows to have taken more initiative in answering these questions by immersing ourselves in Washington DC for a full quarter.  After we’re all graduated in the next few years, hopefully Noreen Kassam’s words stick with all of us as we leave Columbus and enter out into the world: “I hope you do well, but more importantly I hope you do good.”  

--- Alex Polivka