First year students gathered in Ithaca College's Ben Light Gymnasium August 26 for Convocation, an annual event that brings together faculty and staff to welcome new students and set the tone for their Ithaca education. The ceremony, a tradition at the College, was the last for President James J. Whalen, who will step down from his post next spring.
"This
may sound like a tall order, but my message to you is simply to
take advantage of all that your education has to offer,"
Whalen told the students. "The broader your experience here,
the better it will serve you as the foundation for a lifetime
of change."
In his address, Whalen spoke of the many challenges today's students face. "Your generation is permitted to take almost nothing for granted," he said. "You have very few clear guidelines and even fewer absolute rules to provide structure in your life's journey. The old maps no longer serve; your generation must chart its own course. That is why your education here is so very important and why you must go for it with everything you have."
Whalen
urged students to develop and maintain a zest for life and learning,
to constantly seek fresh knowledge and new places, people, and
ideas. "This stage in your journey is crucial in developing
the habits of intellectual curiosity, inquiry, and reflection
that can last a lifetime," he said. "I ask that you
take my word for it now, but one day you will know that your undergraduate
years shaped much of the rest of your life."
Whalen's remarks came following a processional of faculty, trustees, and administrators in academic regalia. The ceremonies also included remarks by Ithaca College Board of Trustees chairman Herman E. Muller Jr. '51 and music by the Ithaca Brass and the faculty vocal ensemble.