It was, as Dr. Bradley M. Gottfried, president of the College of Southern Maryland noted May 15 in La Plata, “a very, very special event.”
The 55th graduating class from the La Plata campus may have been driven indoors by threatening rain, but the 598 graduates—the largest senior class to graduate at the school—didn’t have their enthusiasm dampened one bit. Gottfried apologized to the hundreds of family and friends who had to be relocated to the Fine Arts Center at the school to watch the even on a large screen television. Had the event been held outside, everyone would have been able to attend.
“I had to make the call,” he said apologetically. “But to the folks at the Fine Arts Center, you do have much more comfortable seats.”
Gottfried said that 25 percent of the class were graduating with honors, and unlike many colleges nationwide where 71 percent are graduating with a huge student loan debt, only 10 percent of the graduates at CSM were facing student loan debt after graduation.
“This is the largest graduating class we’ve ever had at this college,” he noted. “The oldest graduate is 58 years old, the youngest, 17.”
Students were receiving their degrees in 90 disciplines of study.
“As you take the next step and write a new chapter after graduation, we are always here for you,” Gottfried said. “You may go get a doctorate, go on to higher education, but no matter what, this is an institution that cares. Learning is lifelong,” he told the graduates. “Lifelong learning is so very important.”
Student representative Deveraux C. Smith told his fellow students, “It’s not who you know but who you can connect with. If you can contribute to lives around you, you will succeed.”
Michael J. Chiaramonte, president of MedStar Southern Maryland Hospital Center, was the guest speaker for the event. He pointed out three things graduates should focus on.
“Be confident in the power of your education,” he said. “Think like an entrepreneur and never underestimate the gift of failure. Your education has contributed to your life. You’ve all undergone a personal metamorphous. Your views have become more refined. Your college education has left a deep mark on you. As for the second point, start your task, whatever it is, with an end point in mind with equal parts of passion and humility. As for the gift of failure, I started 14 different companies and while some have done well, a few have been exceptional failures. I will tell you, I learned more from those that failed than I did from those that didn’t. Disappointments can teach you much more than your successes can.”
Contact joe.norris@thebaynet.com
