Wesleyan Celebrates 174th Commencement

In his commencement address Wesleyan President Douglas J. Bennet reflected on the long and storied history of the institution and said this class had made its mark as undergraduates and will continue to do so in the future.

“You have shown that you will be part of the solutions,” Bennet said. “I know this because of your responses to Katrina, to the Indian Ocean tsunami, to the genocide in Darfur, and to your Middletown neighbors. Where existing institutions seem not to be getting the job done, you have created new not-for-profit organizations to foster everything from micro-credit in Nepal to nonpartisan debate on global issues in America.”

John Hope Franklin, professor of history, emeritus at Duke University gave the principal address. An internationally-renowned historian, intellectual leader and lifelong civil rights activist, Franklin has served on the National Council on the Humanities, as well as the President’s Advisory Commissions on Public Diplomacy and on Ambassadorial Appointments. Franklin’s numerous publications include The Emancipation Proclamation, The Militant South, and From Slavery to Freedom: A History of African-Americans. Franklin has received honorary degrees from more than 100 colleges and universities.

Franklin exhorted students to put action behind words that were spoken during the last presidential election, especially in the area of education.

“Not long ago, a victorious presidential candidate said during his victory speech that for the next four years his agenda would be ‘putting people first.’ I am not persuaded that this was his watchword for the ensuing four years, but I sincerely hope that ‘putting people first’ will be your resolution for a much, much longer period of time,” Hope-Franklin said. “It is difficult to imagine, for example, a situation where our schools could be worse than they are at present. It has been a source of great embarrassment for our schools at all levels to rank far below the standards that a great nation can reasonably expect to maintain. And it is equally embarrassing to discover that most of the nation’s educational system could well be designated a disaster area…This need not be. What better way for you who graduate today to make a proper beginning than to make a solemn resolve to rescue our schools from their present degraded status, and thus assist in providing our students with the opportunity for a better start in life.”

Wesleyan also awarded an honorary doctor of humane letters degree to Mary O. McWilliams ’71, president of Regence BlueShield, pioneering alumna and trustee emerita.

McWilliams ’71 previously served as president of PacifiCare of Washington where she converted the provider network into groups, expanded statewide, and launched Secure Horizons as a Medicare-Risk plan. She also served as founding chief executive officer for the Sisters of Providence Health Plans in Oregon. She received a bachelor’s degree in American studies from Wesleyan.

Wesleyan awarded the Baldwin Medal to Jean Shaw P‘79 and Biff Shaw ‘51, P’79. It is the highest honor given by Wesleyan’s Alumni Association. The medal is named for Raymond E. Baldwin, a 1916 Wesleyan alumnus who served as a Connecticut Senator, Governor and Chief of the State Supreme Court.