Mr. President, thank you and thanks to the Board of Trustees for this very special honor. Having had the privilege of helping present a number of honorary degrees during my 16 years serving Ball State, it is interesting and exciting to be on this side. It seems like I should be saying, "And now by the authority vested in me by the Board of Trustees…".

Since our tradition has been to limit honorary degree recipients to two minutes, let me speak to the graduates and make two points.

First I will share with you that as president, I had the most fun working with an outstanding group of faculty, administrators, and trustees trying to obtain the financial and human resources sufficient to create programs that challenged students to stretch themselves and learn. I hope you have been stretched. Because you are here today, I know you have learned.

Second, I have advice. Some say the years you spend in college are the best years of your life. I do hope they were productive, challenging, and fun. But now you must go forth and do something important. Not that what you have been doing at Ball State is unimportant. But you have been acquiring the tools—the knowledge, the skills. Now you must use what you have learned to make a contribution—to your family, your community, your country. That’s what is important. So you see your best years are still ahead of you.

Congratulations and best wishes!