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Spring 2011 Student Address: ‘Yesterday’s Students, Today’s Graduates, Tomorrow’s Leaders’

The 2011 spring commencement address was presented by Jessica Giggey, who had served as president of the college’s undergraduate Peer Leaders (2010-2011) and was a member of its Business Ethics Society. Her academic record placed her on the college’s Dean’s List for the eight semesters of her undergraduate studies. On May 14, 2011, She received a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a minor in marketing, and had completed internships with Cross + Associates and Ignite Social Media. Giggey accepted a position with NetApp in the Washington, D.C. area as a sales representative. View her presentation on YouTube … or read her remarks below.

Good afternoon deans, distinguished faculty, proud family members, close friends, and above all, my fellow graduates.

We are all excited to be here today in the RBC Center, to celebrate our achievements with one another. It is truly an honor for me to be standing before you on this momentous occasion. Along with our classmates in December, we are the first official Poole College of Management class to graduate from NC State and sitting here we have time to reflect on the journey that we have completed. We have all had different experiences along the way but our journey through NC State is what we have shared – it’s what binds us together.

Life’s Journeys

I used to take long trips with my family, where all six of us would pile in our suburban and be on our way. Over the course of our trip came the usual questions. “Are we there yet?” “Are we almost there?” “How much longer?”

It seemed as though when we were growing up we were so anxious to arrive at the destination that we failed to appreciate the journey. However, over the past four years, I have come to realize that it was the journey that was important and not necessarily the destination.

Despite what our parents and professors might have hoped, our journey through college was not solely based on academics. We have formed lasting relationships with fellow students, faculty, staff, and even local bar tenders – relationships that I hope you will all maintain as you excel in the future. NC State has also given us numerous memories, from trying to stay awake in Nelson 3400, to those regrettable late night orders of pokie sticks; from tripping over bricks in the brickyard, to beating Carolina all four years in football.

Author Alex Noble once said, “Success is not a place at which one arrives but rather the spirit with which one undertakes and continues the journey.”

As you move forward, you should be confident in your journey because we, as a class, have been preparing for this moment our entire lives – the moment when we step into the real world and become ‘grown-ups.’

We are yesterday’s students, today’s graduates, and tomorrow’s leaders. After today, either you will be entering the corporate world, heading to graduate school, taking time off to travel or just be, well, taking time off. Just remember that no matter what you decide to do, or where you decide to go, you have been prepared with a solid foundation that will help you to succeed.

Remembering the Focus on Real

Here in the Poole College of Management we have acquired preparation through ‘Real Experience, Real Learning and Real Solutions.’

With ‘Real Experience’ you have been given the chance to learn from faculty with fresh perspectives and impressive backgrounds. They taught you things that will be beneficial beyond the classroom, things that can be applied in real-life situations.

With ‘Real Learning’ you have all participated in numerous group projects, internships and other opportunities presented to you that will help guide you in your future endeavors.

And with ‘Real Solutions’ our college helps to identify and solve our industry’s biggest problems through sustainability practices and collaboration between students, faculty and companies from around the world.

Through these ‘Real Experiences, Real Learning and Real Solutions’, you have been provided with the right tools, education and guidance that will allow you to be a key competitor in the challenging business world you are entering.

Today you all have something to be proud of. Through dedication, hard work, support and a whole lot of caffeine, you have worked hard to get to this point in your journey. You have rattled your brain by completing long hours of course work, taking numerous finals, meeting for group projects, and passing the dreaded M110 exam.

Naming of the Poole College

There was even a particularly special moment in the college that we all got to experience this past year. In December, we were given a $37 million endowment from Mr. Lonnie C. Poole Jr. and his family – the largest financial gift ever received in our university’s 123-year history. This gift is not only a testament to the achievements that our college has made, but also it is an investment that the Pooles’ have made in you and me. Their belief in us and in our program shows the distinguished value that our college and our degrees have to offer.

While we think about the times that have made NC State so memorable, I’d like for you to pause and think about who has made this all possible for you – those who have shared your incredible journey and maybe even helped to fund your memories and goals. Their encouragement, persistence, faith, and in some cases, their bank accounts, are what bring us here today on this pivotal occasion.

I would personally like to thank my family, especially my parents. So Mom and Dad – thank you. Thank you for your continuous love and support over the past 22 years… because without you, I would not be the woman I am today.

So now let’s all pause and take a moment and have our parents, family members, spouses and any other person in this arena who has sacrificed to help us get here today stand up, as we say thank you – we appreciate you helping us along our each of our journeys.

This is it graduates. We are now straddling the brink of adulthood. We sit here today, as the Class of 2011, eager to receive our diplomas and eager to open a new chapter in our lives.

Together, we have completed our journey at NC State, and it has come time for us to venture out on our own separate ways, where only you can pick your direction and only you can choose your destiny.

Always remember where you have been, where you are, and where you are going. Never forget your journey through NC State, the Poole College of Management and through life, because all the places that your journey will take you, all the people that you will encounter, and everything you experience along the way, is what creates and fills the pages in the story of the journey of your life.

Congratulations graduates and Go Wolfpack!

Poole College Board of Advisors’ Address

Picking up on the Giggey’s reference to the ‘ties that bind,’ Jeff Brock, a 1993 alumnus of the college, said in his presentation of the college’s Board of Advisors address that graduation was also a time to create “new habits that bind,” including the habit of being active alumni. Brock has modeled that thought through his own involvement in the life of the college, including serving on the college’s advisory board and judging entries in its annual Leadership and Innovation Showcase.

“Today is a special day,” Brock said, “a transitional day. You knew this day was coming. … You now have new freedom. To paraphrase, freedom is the opportunity to create new habits that bind. It’s exciting, but comes with risks. It takes maturity,” he said.

Brock encouraged the graduates to take advantage of that freedom to set new goals, new habits.

“One habit that can bind all of us,” he said, is the habit of being an active alumnus, one who stays connected with NC State and the Poole College of Management. That includes helping their new employers to recruit future employees from Poole College.

Citing a Wall Street Journal survey that ranked NC State 19th among employers, Brock said, “that surprised some people. You’ll hear us being talked about as ‘a diamond in the rough.’ But how long can we walk around being called ‘in the rough’? I’m not a diamond in the rough. I’m a freakin’ diamond. You’re all diamonds. Make it a habit to walk tall. I need you as an alumn … to create a habit of walking tall and proud, and of being supportive of the college.”

Photos

Jessica Giggey, left, and Jeff Brock, presenter of the Poole College commencement addresses