FROM THE OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS

May 22, 2004
JS-1679

The Honorable John W. Snow
Prepared Remarks
Kenyon College Commencement
Gambier, OH

Thank you so much for having me here on what is one of the most significant days of your lives... and of your parents' lives.

For you, today is about the future, and the enormous possibilities it holds.

For your parents, today is also about the future… one without tuition payments.

So congratulations to one and all.

I promise you that the future of my remarks is a short one. I'll offer you a few thoughts and then let you get those diplomas that you have worked so very hard for.

I've returned to Kenyon today with three things for the class of 2004:

*     a reminder of your place in history,

*     a way of looking at your education and what it means,

*     and a little bit of advice about living life to its fullest.

First, your place in history.

You are graduating at a time - and in a place - of unparalleled opportunity.

This great country has faced difficult times while you were studying here at Kenyon, and your graduation is well timed with our economy's recovery, the full return of its strength.

While we will always bear the emotional scars of September 11th, we no longer bear the economic ones.

We will also never forget the lessons we learned from the corporate greed and scandals that were growing in the 90s and rocked our markets and hurt so many workers early in this decade. But we have moved on from those days as well - in a direction that places a premium on accountability and ethics in business.

We've come through these challenges in a way that only America can. Our free market makes us so resilient, and today all economic indicators are very strong. Most importantly, jobs are being created at a very strong pace - 1.1 million over the past eight months.

With the knowledge and skills that you offer, the job market is ripe for you right now.

Your place in history is also unique because we have also been reminded, while you have been a student here, of the fact that the freedom we enjoy in this country is unique, and it is precious.

As a nation we have been more exposed to the tyrannies that existed in Afghanistan and Iraq. We have realized what it means to live in a place where girls cannot go to school and women cannot realize their personal or professional dreams.

We have been reminded that our freedom vast, it is precious, and it is the envy of the world.

You should let the fact of our freedom thrill you. You are as free, right now, as any human being on this earth. The openness of our markets and our society mean your creativity will be unencumbered.

You are so much more fortunate than your counterparts across the globe - those graduating from universities today in France, Germany, and Italy for example, are entering into anemic economies where job creation is limited.

I cannot tell you what the jobs of the future will be here in this country, but I can promise you that they will be different than they are today, and that the spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship this country has in such abundance will keep those jobs coming, and keep them interesting. Entrepreneurship, after all, is creativity in action.

I'll be talking about this topic with Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown on Monday. The UK shares our respect and appreciation for the contributions of entrepreneurs, so we'll be working on ways to encourage that spirit in both the UK and U.S.

As the beneficiaries of a liberal arts education, you will be part of the critical thinking and creativity that will lead to the jobs of the future. I have always seen a linkage between the spirit of the entrepreneur, the qualities of entrepreneurship, and the qualities of a mind nurtured and inculcated by a first-rate liberal arts education, the sort that you have been privileged to have here at Kenyon.

Think about this: When I was a student here at Kenyon 40 years ago, no one had heard of the internet, cell phones or instant messaging. We didn't download our music to an iPod... we put a needle on a round piece of vinyl, and we thought that was pretty good!

Now we can't imagine our lives without the technology we utilize every day.

Progress is a fantastic thing, and free societies enjoy all of its fruits.

Your superior education has given you something else to enhance your life in a free society. As Kenyon graduates, you now have some of the critical tools and skills that will help you reach your goals.

In short: Today is an excellent time to leave this campus, for the options open to you are nearly limitless.

The second thing that I offer to you this morning is a way of looking at your Kenyon education. What does it mean, this diploma, these years of classes, papers and exams?

This is very important: Education is not the knowledge you gain. It is the ability to learn.

Your years at Kenyon have developed your ability to learn, to look hard at questions and have a disciplined mind.

An educated person has a spirit of inquiry... and that is far more important than a body of knowledge. It is similar to that entrepreneurial spirit that I spoke of a moment ago… and it is something that our society cherishes… and this is fortunate for all of us.

Life will be full of uncertainties; I would be lying if I told you differently. And in the face of uncertainty there are no proven rules no algorithm one can turn to. But your education here will help you deal with those uncertainties.

Because ultimately one must find answers through that spirit of inquiry, self-reliance and self-confidence - the things that lie at the heart of a good liberal arts education.

You're now equipped to enter into the unknown and use your critical mind to determine the best course.

Your education here has exposed you to so many different areas - from music to physics, poetry to psychology - you have by now learned how all facets of this life are somehow connected, and that will help you draw conclusions and make critical decisions.

This leads me to the third and final segment of my speech: my advice to you. Because those critical decisions do start now.

Take your ability to learn and decide to use it pursuing a lifetime of learning.

Tackle each new job - you are likely to have many over the course of your career - with that spirit of inquiry that you have honed here at Kenyon.  Learn about each place that you visit, and each person that you meet, each situation that you encounter.

Learn from both conflict and harmony, from your own successes and failures.

And please don't forget to learn about the communities in which you live, wherever they might be. The best way to do this is to get involved in those communities as a volunteer, and to give of yourself to your neighbors.

When we help each other, when we love one another, our society is lifted and doors are opened.

This is an essential part of living a truly full life, and of pursuing that path of lifelong learning.

Keep exercising those critical minds of yours, wherever you go. Make sure your mind and your heart work in partnership. If you do this, you will make the Kenyon community as proud as I know your parents are of you today.

Thank you again for having me here. Congratulations on your achievement.