A commencement speaker should be relevant to the LMU senior class, have a unique knowledge base and the ability to give seniors good advice and have made a substantial or significant contribution to the world.
This year’s commencement speaker fails to meet these requirements.
As reported on the Loyolan’s Web site last Friday, the University has invited Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick to speak at the undergraduate commencement ceremony next Saturday. For most seniors, the commencement address is given by someone they look forward to hearing speak and will remember for the rest of their lives. But Patrick’s pending visit lacks the appropriate excitement factor, and therefore, leaves us puzzled by the decision.
While his successful career leads us to believe that he does have unique knowledge in the political world, having served as United States assistant attorney general under former President Bill Clinton and currently as governor of Massachusetts, we still question his specific relevance to us as Lions.
First, Patrick seems irrelevant to the LMU senior class. He has neither directly affected our experience of being college students in Los Angeles, nor does he know anything about our time here on the bluff.
Second, while being a governor obviously gives Patrick clout, his relevance lies nearly 3,000 miles away. His decisions and accomplishments rarely enter into our news bubble on this coast, much less in this city. If a governor is someone the University finds appropriate to speak to its graduates, why not bring the governor of California? Or at least a neighboring state?
Patrick’s resumé suggests that he has made somewhat significant contributions to American – but more specifically, Massachusetts – politics in the last few years. He has obviously left a mark on this world, but how is that mark central to the mission of Loyola Marymount University?
We concede that it is extremely difficult to pick a commencement speaker and, no matter who is chosen, it is impossible to please everyone. For instance, if a politician is chosen, half of the audience is seemingly alienated simply because of their political beliefs; if someone from a specific industry is chosen (like a filmmaker), many, if not most, graduates may not find the speaker’s experiences relevant to their major. Nevertheless, it should be the goal of the University to choose someone who appeals to as many graduates (and their families) as possible. Frankly, we are having a hard time figuring out how this choice does that.
LMU’s location alone should make qualified speakers more accessible, as we are located in a city that is home to some of the best, brightest and most well-known minds in our country. For example, our School of Film and Television has strong connections with Hollywood’s film industry, and our alumni base provides an ample number of commencement speaker options. There are many alumni who have served the community through a variety of outlets, but can also relate to our experience as Lions.
In the past four years that we have been fortunate enough to attend LMU, we have seen the likes of Magic Johnson, Lisa Ling, Bill Maher, Karl Rove, Seth MacFarlane, Greg Mortenson and Elie Wiesel speak at events on campus that do not hold the significance of a commencement ceremony. These speakers filled entire auditoriums; if Patrick had been invited to any other event on campus, we sadly realize that he would not be able to fill one of our smaller venues. If students and specific departments on campus could organize events with speakers of this caliber, we feel the University as a whole should be able to do the same for our graduation day.
The two of us have listened to seniors in classes past voice negative opinions about their commencement speaker choices, and we did not want to follow suit. However, of the commencement speakers that have been here during our years at LMU, we are the most confused by this one. Despite Patrick’s life experience, he just does not have that X-factor that excites the senior class. We are still looking forward to graduation day, and we will be open-minded to hear Patrick’s speech. But we remain disappointed with the selection and hope the University makes more relevant and exciting choices for future classes.
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