John D. Simon's 148th Commencement Remarks

Monday, May 23, 2016

Welcome to the 148th commencement of Lehigh University. On behalf of the entire Lehigh community, I would like to welcome all of our guests with us today – especially the families and friends of our graduates, our commencement speakers, members of the Board of Trustees, and the members of the Class of 1966, who celebrated their 50th reunion this past weekend.

Commencement ceremonies are occasions for dispensing sage advice, as we send our newly minted graduates out into the world, ready to make their mark. I’ll leave the wisdom and advice to our featured speakers – your fellow students and Lehigh alum Joe Perella. I want to take just a few moments to tell you a little about yourselves.

There are 1,001 undergraduates in the Class of 2016. You hail from 39 states and 16 countries.

We have 459 graduate students receiving degrees, from 24 states and 15 countries.

The most popular major among the Class of 2016 is finance, followed by mechanical engineering, accounting, and psychology. You collectively have chosen a staggering 70 different majors, a true reflection of the broad intellectual engagement of your class.

The most popular degree among our graduate students is in mechanical engineering, followed by analytical finance, accounting, and structural engineering.

I have heard about the accomplishments of many of you receiving degrees today. I am impressed! And I am confident that you will do great things. I’d like to give you a small taste of what I learned.

  • As a Presidential Scholar, one of you is graduating with both an IBE degree and a BS in mechanical engineering. You were the recipient of the first Peller Undergraduate Research Assistant Award, and your research will be published in the Journal of Macroeconomics.
  • Another of you shined as a volunteer: Since your sophomore year, you coordinated Spooktacular, our Halloween-themed event that welcomes over 800 South Bethlehem community members to campus. That meant organizing some 25 student organizations, fraternities, and sororities to make this event the great success that it is.
  • Two of you presented at the United Nations’ First International Day of Women and Girls in Science in February, alongside diplomats, politicians, educators, and other leaders. You spoke about what inspired you to pursue careers in the STEM fields, providing a role model for others to follow.
  • In addition to writing a stellar dissertation, another of you had the distinction of earning the Graduate Student Merit Award. You also served as the assistant director of our Global Citizenship program for three years and were an advisor on senior capstone projects.

These are just a few examples of the broad excellence and numerous achievements of the students we see before us today. My heartiest congratulations to each and every one of you on what you have accomplished here at Lehigh.