Marquette University

May 23, 2013

Dear Marquette alumni,

One of my favorite moments in the life of the university each year is the opportunity our university community gets, as we did this weekend, to congratulate the students of our graduating class for earning their degrees and to welcome them as "daughters and sons of Marquette forever."

This year, a packed house at the BMO Harris Bradley Center extended that welcome to a special honorary member of the Class of 2013, Dr. Bill Cosby. When the legendary comedian donned a Marquette baseball cap with a tassel and showed off the Marquette sweatshirt beneath his graduation gown, graduates who were toddlers when The Cosby Show ended its run gave him a standing ovation. A pioneer in breaking down racial stereotypes on television, he is also a strong example of lifelong learning, having earned two advanced degrees after becoming a national figure. His keynote remarks are worth watching for his signature brand of storytelling and thoughts about what it means to be a graduate of a great Jesuit university. Like his fellow recipient of an honorary doctor of letters degree, Sister Rosemary Connelly, a trailblazer in the care of developmentally disabled individuals as executive director of Misericordia in Chicago, Cosby offered much to inspire his younger classmates. Find his remarks at the 47-minute mark of the Commencement webcast.

As the name implies, Commencement is more of a beginning than a conclusion. It really is our graduates' gateway to lifelong membership in the Marquette family. Realize how much they appreciate opportunities to network with you and fellow alumni — to benefit from the knowledge and experience you have collected along your journeys from Marquette. As you encounter them starting their new lives and careers, please welcome them and look after them as members of our family.

Thank you for everything you do to advance Marquette for the glory of God and the well-being of the world.

Sincerely,

Scott R. Pilarz, S.J.
President
Marquette University


MARQUETTE UNIVERSITY. Be The Difference.
P.O. Box 1881
Milwaukee, WI 53201-1881

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