Class of 2001 graduates with words of advice from Stanford University president and fellow alum
Maureen McKew

For at least one alumnus of Villanova University, Homecoming arrived early this year. On Sunday, May 20, Dr. John L. Hennessy, III, ‘73 E.E., president of Stanford University, returned to his alma mater to receive an honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters and to address the members of the graduating class of 2001.

For a while, it appeared that Villanova’s amazing streak of fine commencement weather would be broken. However, in spite of grey skies and gusty winds that made the banners and flags snap noisily, the rain held off and a long procession of graduates, faculty, administration and guests filed into Villanova Stadium to the cheers of family and friends.

Perhaps remembering his own commencement 28 years earlier or mindful of the speech-making responsibilities that come with any presidency, Hennessy began by referring to the advice former New York governor Mario Cuomo received from the president of St. John’s University as he returned to speak at his alma mater.

The commencement speaker is like the body at an old-fashioned Irish wake, Cuomo was told. One couldn’t have the event without the corpse. However, the corpse is not expected to say much.

With that, Hennessy turned his attention to the meaning of a commencement. He exhorted the graduates to be bold, reminding them that they live in nation of pioneers, of citizens of willing to take risk.

He coupled his call to boldness with a commitment to strive to do one’s best. "Not all your efforts will have favorable outcomes," he said, "and the knowledge that you gave it your best may be most beneficial in exactly those circumstances."

"Above all," he added, maintain your integrity, honor your commitments and speak truthfully,"

Hennessy completed his talk by mentioning a young Masai tribesman, named Kamali Wilson, from a small village in Kenya, whose fellow villagers cooperated to enable this exceptional young man to attend Stanford University. Wilson’s dream is to become a physician, then return home and practice among the people who made his dream possible.

"Not all of us can be Kamilis," Hennessy stated, "but each of us can make the most of the gift of education. We can put our education to work for the betterment of mankind, and share the gift of education, making it possible for others to benefit as we have."

Hennessy himself has enjoyed a remarkable career. After graduating from Villanova in 1973, Hennessy received masters and doctoral degrees in computer science from the State University of New York at Stony Brook. He joined Stanford as a faculty member in 1977, rising from an assistant professor to a full professor of electrical engineering and computer science, then chairman of the computer science department, dean of the College of Engineering, University provost and, in September of 2000, University president.

In 1981, Hennessy initiated the MIPS project at Stanford; MIPS is a high-performance Reduced Instruction Set Computer (RISC), built in VLSI. This technology revolutionized the computer industry, leading to the longest period of sustained performance growth in the last 30 years of computing. In addition to his part in the basic research, Hennessy played a key role in transferring this technology to industry. During a 1984-85 sabbatical, he co-founded MIPS Computer System, a Silicon Valley company specializing on the production of computers and chips based on these concepts.

Hennessy was previously honored by Villanova in 1983, when he was awarded the John J. Gallen Memorial Award as the most outstanding young engineering alumnus. Among his many other honors, he received a 1984 National Science Foundation Presidential Young Investigator Award. In 1987, he was named the Willard and Inez K. Bell Professor of Electrical Engineering and in 1991, SUNY Stony Brook gave him a Distinguished Alumnus Award. He also is the recipient of the 1994 IEEE Piore Award, the 2000 ASEE R. Lamme Medal and the 2000 John Von Neumann Medal.

As Hennessy himself would no doubt acknowledge, his was not the only excellent speech delivered to the class of 2001. The other came from Matthew T. Reiter, a member of the graduating class of the College of Engineering.

"How truly blessed are we right now. At this moment, each person, complete with his or her own unique story and unique hometown, is surrounded by his or her own unique loved ones," Reiter mused.

"We are fortunate to be among the one percent of the world’s population with a college educatioon. We are the result of literally trillions of mean and women, forefathers, grandmothers, that made unthinkable sacrifices to get us here today."

He concluded: "What Villanova has given us is our unique vision of success. We must find what truly makes us happy, find beauty, find that which repels us, and find the Sacred – then we will have found success."

During the ceremony, the Rev. Edmund J. Dobbin, O.S.A. ‘58, University president, acting on behalf of the board of trustees and the faculty, conferred honorary degrees on five other distinguished persons. Dr. Ali bin Mohammed bin Moosa Al-Moosa, minister of health of the Sultanate of Oman, received the degree Doctor of Laws. Since his appointment by Sultan Qaboos bin Said in 1989, he has worked to address major health concerns in Oman, including infant mortality, maternal-child health services, and diabetes, which is a major health problem in that nation.

The Rev. William E. Atkinson, O.S.A.’73, who in 1974 became the first priest with a disability to be ordained by the Catholic Church, received the degree Doctor of Humanities. Father Atkinson, who was unable to be present, is a religion professor and assistant on the football coaching staff at Msgr. Bonner High School in Upper Darby, Pa. He is in constant demand as a homilist, retreat leader and counselor.

The Rev. John P. McNamee, pastor of St. Malachy Church in Philadelphia, also received the degree Doctor of Humanities. Inspired by the Rev. Daniel Berrigan, S.J., peace activist and poet, Father McNamee has written several books of poetry and prose championing the rights of poor persons, including Diary of a City Priest, which was made into a film for public television.

Marilyn Randolph and Theresa Caritas Serafin, coordinators of Misión de Amistad (Mission of Friendship) in Merida, Yucatan, Mexico, were each awarded the degree Doctor of Humanities. Established in 1971 as a cooperative venture by the Archdiocese of Yucatan and the Diocese of Erie, Pa., Misión de Amistad supports mobile and permanent health clinics, a shelter for young girls, a day care center, a women’s literacy project, and many more outreach programs. Randolph has been with the mission since 1976 and Serafin joined her in 1983.

In addition to conferring degrees, both honorary (the guests) and earned (the graduates), Father Dobbin presented the Christian R. and Mary F. Lindback Award for Distinguished Teaching to Dr. Michael C. Berthold, associate professor of English. The Philadelphia native joined the Villanova faculty in 1987. His area of specialization is 19^th-century American literature; his particular interests include Herman Melville, slave narratives and the American Gothic. He holds a master’s and a doctoral degree in English and American Literature and Language from Harvard University. Candidates for this Lindback Award, founded in 1961, are selected by students and faculty and receive a cash stipend.