Remarks at Matriculation of Class of 2010
Terry Cowdrey
Vice President and Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid

Let me add my welcome on behalf of the staff of the Office of Admissions and Financial Aid.  It is a great pleasure to see all of you—students in the Class of 2010, transfer and exchange students, and your families.  More than anyone else, I am aware of the potential you new students have, both as individuals and as a group, to have a positive impact on this University and to gain much from your St. Lawrence experience.  You were invited to join this community of scholars because of this potential.

You have likely been told that one of the most important parts of your college experience will be the people you meet.  While it may be natural to gravitate toward those who are most like you, you will get much more out of your St. Lawrence experience if you intentionally seek out those with different backgrounds, interests and perspectives.  By doing so, you will undoubtedly discover new interests and make lifelong friends.  Let me introduce you to each other and introduce the Class of 2010 to the community.

From Wayne Abare to Jessica Ziegler, there are 612 first-year students, 327 women and 285 men.  There are six exchange students and 14 transfer students, enrolling from 14 different colleges.   You come from around the world: from 22 countries, five Canadian provinces, 32 U.S. states, Guam and the Virgin Islands.   Some of you traveled a great distance to St. Lawrence, coming from Kenya, Uganda and Zimbabwe; from Sweden, France, Switzerland, Austria and Spain; from Bulgaria, Latvia, Ukraine, Belarus and Bosnia Herzegovina.  You have traveled from your homes in Jamaica, Israel and Nepal, and from Vietnam, Japan, South Korea and East Timor.   Seven of you from North America are the sole representatives of your states or provinces, coming to Canton from New Brunswick and Saskatchewan, from Delaware, Kansas, Missouri, Michigan and Utah.  Nearly half the first year class – 301 of you – are the only one from your high school class to choose St. Lawrence.  Ten of you are classmates from Champlain Valley Union High School and seven graduated from Stratton Mountain School, both in Vermont, as well as seven from both Proctor Academy in New Hampshire and Gouverneur High School here in northern New York.

Five sets of twins begin their St. Lawrence careers together today, as well as two of a set of triplets, and two sisters who are not twins. Several of you start college today without your twin by your side.  Four pairs of cousins have chosen to become classmates.  Forty-eight of you have parents who graduated from St. Lawrence, for 10 of you both parents; 47 follow older siblings here; and seven have both parent and sibling legacies.  Eighteen of you have grandparents who graduated from St. Lawrence; eight of you are third-generation Laurentians.  One member of the class has 17 St. Lawrence relatives and one has 18.

Sixty-six of you were born in March, more than in any other month, and if your birthday is April 5 or July 17, you have six classmates who share your birthday.   Two of you, Stefanie and Matty, celebrate birthdays today.
In your class Christopher is the most common men’s name – there are 12 – though eight prefer Chris and one goes by C. P.; two share first and last names!  There is one Matt and 11 Matthews, nine of whom prefer to be called Matt.  If you add together the Johns and Jonathans and Ians, there are 18, though you will be calling one Justin, one KK and one Pete. There are nine Elizabeths, all of whom have nicknames: Liz, Lizzy, Beth and Bonnie, and nine Jennifers, plus a Jenna and a Virginia who prefers Jenny.  If you add up all the Katherines, Kathleens, Kaitlins and the like, there are 30, with many spellings, and lots who go by Katie or Kate. Once again, two share first and last names.  The Class of 2010 includes Lily, Iris, Jazmine, Forrest and Skye.

Your academic achievements earned you admission to St. Lawrence.  Ninety-five of you received Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate credit and others earned credit for college courses taken while in high school.  You demonstrated your passion for learning through ecology research in Yellowstone Park and in Costa Rica.  You tracked koalas in Australia, researched the rainforest in Brazil, and studied biodiversity in Ecuador.  You pursued your passions independently studying meteorology, hydrogen transportation and Dutch culture.  You participated in archaeological digs in New York and in Spain, authored a book about twins -- with your twin – and wrote a history of the 112th Cavalry Regiment.

Some of you moved beyond the confines of your high school to attend the Island School and the Ocean Classroom, or to pursue your own curriculum through home-schooling.  You tested your knowledge in the Science and Math Olympiads, Envirothon and Academic Decathlon; and competed on Whiz Quiz, Masterminds and Scholastic Bowl teams.  You were named AP Scholars and Ventures Scholars, competed in the Odyssey of the Mind World Championships, won first place in the science fair, and had your poetry published. 

Some of you chose St. Lawrence because of your interest in international study and multiculturalism.  Many of you have spent time in countries other than your native one,  studying in Argentina, China and Germany; visiting family in El Salvador and Korea; racing sailboats in Finland, playing squash in Scotland, and skiing in Chile and Switzerland.  You have taught English in an orphanage in Bali, worked as a nanny in Spain and worked for the SPCA in Israel.  You have been exchange students and hosted exchange students.  You have participated in Amnesty International and People-to-People.  You are active members of Temple Youth Groups, UCC Youth Groups and Presbyterian Youth Groups. You study Serbian culture, teach in the local Scandinavian Studies program and participate in the Polish Boy Scouts.  You have interned at the Irish Arts Center and worked as a counselor at a Buddhist camp.  You are Muslim, Quaker, Catholic and Christian Scientist.

You bring considerable talent in the arts to St. Lawrence.  Two hundred seventy-four of you are involved in music and 157 in drama and dance.  You play nearly all of the instruments of the orchestra, as well as the bagpipes, the Irish fiddle and the mandolin.  You have performed in a string quartet at weddings and as part of Strolling Strings; you play in the town band, the pep band, the marching band, and the bell choir.  You have performed at Carnegie Hall and with Celine Dion at the Fleet Center.  You sing as part of a barbershop group and the gospel choir, and sing the national anthem at school events.  You have performed in Sophisticated Ladies, Eklektic, and The Scenic View.  You sang in the Balkan Chorus that appeared in the film In the Bedroom.

You love to dance: modern, hip hop, ballet and ballroom.   You compete on dance teams and share your skills by teaching dance.  You have performed in Oliver!, Chicago and The Heidi Chronicles; you were George in Our Town, Demetrius in A Midsummer Night's Dream and the Queen of Hearts in Alice in Wonderland.  Two of you were Maria in The Sound of Music. 

You have done improv, performed as Elvis, and won Best Comedic Performance at Talent Night.  You have won the Louis Armstrong Jazz Award, danced at Disney World, directed a full-length movie and created a CD for your school.  You paint scenery, do make-up, work the sound board and serve as stage manager.

Almost all of you have considerable experience in making your communities a better place to live, and have given of your time and talent for many worthy causes.  At the center of attention for many of you is responding to world events, working for hurricane, tsunami and earthquake relief, each in your own schools and communities.  Your ability to respond was facilitated by the habits of service you have developed working with your families and classmates with organizations such as Habitat for Humanity, the Special Olympics and Relay for Life.  You have walked, run, danced, climbed stairs and bowled to raise money for research, trying to find better treatments and cures for cancer, cystic fibrosis, diabetes and AIDS.  You have walked for hunger, rung bells for the Salvation Army and made holiday baskets for local families.  You have knitted hats for premature babies and “stitched for the cause,” doing needlepoint for breast cancer. 

You work on behalf of your peers through SafeRides and SADD, through Peer Outreach and Teens for AIDS Prevention.  You have “rowed for humanity” and participated in Hoops for Hope, Cradles to Crayons, and Cleats for Kenyans.  You work with Meals on Wheels, the Empty Bowl project and at your local food bank.  You showed initiative in founding a charity bass-fishing derby and a fun-run benefit; you founded chapters of Operation Smile and Best Buddies at your schools and organized International Red Cross Day.  You have volunteered at nursing homes and taken care of your own grandparents, and you worked with children as Best Buddies and Big Siblings.  You have adopted highways, donated blood, mentored a second-grader and been an elf for the Polar Express. You have been volunteers at hospitals and museums, libraries and zoos.  You are first-responders and volunteer firefighters.  You were voted “Most Caring.”

Two hundred and nine of you participated in, and often led, your student government and other school organizations; others of you have participated in state and local government, interning with Congressman Berman and at the DA’s office.  You have honed your leadership skills at the National Student Leadership Conference, on the Global Youth Leadership Council, at the Green Mountain Teen Institute and in Girls’ and Boys’ State programs across the country. Among you are class presidents, Eagle and Gold Scouts, prefects and proctors. Several of you have served on the Board of Education; others on the Climate Committee, the Town Zoning Board and the Parish Council.  You have been active participants in Model UN, Model Congress, Mock Trial and the Constitution Team.  You have edited newspapers, literary magazines and yearbooks, chaired proms and led pep rallies. You have presided over the Student Athletic Association and the disciplinary committee.  Your achievements have been recognized with the Rotary Youth Leadership Award, Good Citizen Awards, and your designation as “Top Boy” and “Most Diplomatic,” “Most Respected Senior” and “Most School Spirit.”

For some of you, your love of the outdoors and concern for the environment figured prominently in your choice of St. Lawrence.  You have worked with the Youth Conservation Corps, Landmark Volunteers and the Student Conservation Association to build and maintain trails.  You raise waterfowl, show cattle and sheep and farm oysters.  You rank 15th in the World International Sled Dog Racing Association and have competed internationally in rock-climbing.  You have developed your skills through participation in Outward Bound, National Outdoor Leadership School and Wilderness Ventures.  You hike and climb, fish and hunt, canoe and kayak, snowboard and wakeboard, and teach kids about nature.  You have built habitats for wolves, volunteered at the Audubon Center, worked at Walden Pond and on an organic farm.  You have attended and worked at camps all over North America, and this past week 77 of you participated in pre-trips organized by the Outdoor Program.  You are a blacksmithing counselor and a ropes course instructor.

More than 85 percent of you competed in at least one sport and 250 of you served as team captains.  You have rowed in the Royal Canadian Henley Regatta, sailed in the Junior Olympics and played semi-pro soccer.  You compete on a professionally sponsored paintball team and are a sponsored athlete for free skiing.  You competed on the Canadian Under-22 women’s hockey team – last week – and in many sports in the Empire State Games, winning a gold medal in riflery.  You are pentathletes and triathletes, an assistant tennis pro and a skeleton racer.  You are accomplished in the martial arts: karate, jiu jitsu, tae kwon do.  You are pole-vaulters, kick-boxers and synchronized skaters. You are surfers and eventers, referees and umpires.  You founded Lacrosse for Life and the KickStart Youth Soccer Clinic.  You have won the Brian Piccolo Award in football and the Sparkplug Award in skiing; you hold school records for rushing and in the 45-meter dash.  You teach tennis, sailing and swimming; and coach basketball, soccer and Little League.  You have interned with athletic trainers and archived broadcast material at The Sports Network.  You are lifeguards, rink supervisors and a cheerleader for a semi-pro football team.  You love Ultimate Frisbee and curling.
Many of you have combined your academic and extracurricular interests with part-time or summer jobs; others have worked to contribute to their families’ incomes and to contribute toward their college education.  You have interned in finance offices and insurance companies, at Marriott and Versace.  You have worked with your parents in dental and medical offices as well as auto shops and jewelry stores.  You have learned from your parents and grandparents, working on family farms, in restaurants and motels; in the boat business and the maple syrup business.

You have developed skills for dealing with people while escorting guests in horse-drawn carriages, working at the Bingo concession and working at the New York and Wisconsin State fairs.  You have sold shoes, toys, snowmobiles and bunkbeds, and washed cars, boats and clothes.  You have delivered bread and newspapers, and repaired watches, books and bikes.  You have packed fish and wine, stocked bottles and designed window displays.

You have learned practical skills: as a group you have collective experience that would allow you to build a house or perhaps a whole community.  You have worked in lumberyards and in all kinds of construction, remodeling bathrooms, siding houses, as a stonemason and an ironworker’s apprentice.  You have done electrical work and plumbing, as well as interior design.  You have painted houses and cut carpet.  You have mowed lawns and shoveled snow, and have worked on tobacco farms, Christmas-tree farms and a citrus ranch.

You have worked in restaurants as servers, cooks, busboys and dishwashers, at the Flying Fish and the Wobbly Moose, and at every fast-food chain and grocery store in the Northeast.  You have scooped ice cream at Leah’s, Maggie Moo’s and Brigham’s, among many others.  You have made salads, coffee, candy and donuts. 

Several of you have started and run businesses of your own, from driveway-sealing to Web site design, landscaping to freelance photography, selling pretzels to modeling.  Others have explored career interests working at hospitals, banks, libraries and schools.

Much of what you have learned has taught you about human nature as you continually interact with others.  You have been caddies, nannies and store clerks. You have worked as a bellman, a reporter, a car detailer and a farrier.  You have played Little Bo Peep at Santa’s Workshop and worked as a belayer at kids’ parties.  You have worked as a pharmacy technician, day-care provider, dental assistant and disc jockey.  You have arranged flowers, translated animated cartoons and helped coordinate weddings and mall promotions.

Your interests are as varied as your work experiences: you restore Model-A Fords and take flying lessons; weave and sew; play chess and discuss politics.  You raise seeing-eye dogs (Nigel and Tyler) and build World War II models.  You do yoga, design jewelry and SCUBA dive.  You enjoy silversmithing, ceramics, woodturning, archery and model-railroading.  You knit, build boats and play the drums.

In your schools you have been active in clubs that support your interests in astronomy and Arabic; investments and architecture; Italian and bridge.  You founded clubs focused on business, American Sign Language and snowboarding.   You are in the Fox Hunting Club, the Animal Rights Club and PAWS (Pets Are Worth Supporting).  You are in the Young Republicans Club, the Support our Troops Club and Young United Peacemakers.  You have won the Creative Cooking Achievement Award and the Best Contemporary Art Award.  You were named Prom Duchess and Homecoming Queen, and George the Tiger, your school mascot.

In your essays you wrote about those you admire, your parents and grandparents, and sometimes your brothers: Aidan, Connor, Matt, Adam and Trevor; and your sisters: Rachel and Allison.  You wrote about your horses: Calvin, Spankie, Percy, Levi, Tiger Lily and Mystique.   Many of you wrote about your hopes for your future, sharing the source of your inspiration by quoting Shakespeare, Longfellow, Browning and Frost; Stevie Wonder and Bob Marley; Eleanor and Teddy Roosevelt, Jimmy Carter and Winston Churchill.  You quoted Alan Alda, John Muir and Babe Ruth; Plato, Einstein, Camus and Thoreau; John Lennon and Bruce Springsteen. 

Some of you have articulated a specific goal: to become an environmental journalist, a civil liberties attorney, an art therapist and a criminal profiler.  Others have identified organizations for which you want to work: the Peace Corps, the UN, Doctors Without Borders.  You want to play hockey in the Olympics (for the U.S. and for Canada), become a diplomat; and work as a guidance counselor, political analyst and an equine veterinarian.  All of you will be well-prepared to fulfill these dreams because of the liberal arts education that you are pursuing here.

As you have heard, you represent widely varying backgrounds, experiences and interests.  You bring to St. Lawrence different perspectives on many issues.  As you get to know one another, your goal should be to learn from one another.  Keep in mind that a successful discussion is not one where you convince someone else to take your point of view but where, instead, each of you comes to a broader understanding of the issue at hand.