Swarthmore College bids adieu to Class of 2017
SWARTHMORE >> There is a reason Swarthmore College refers to the annual transition from students to alumni as “commencement,” rather than graduation. For young men and women receiving degrees, they know where they have been; but may not be as certain where they are going.
That was one theme of yesterday’s ceremony taking place in the Scott Amphitheater on a clearly ideal day. The Class of 2017 was literally and figuratively backed by family and friends, and faced the stage filled with faculty in academic garb accented by the colorful “hoods” indicating their degree and field of learning.
The scene was inspiring, only to be exceeded by the messages of each speaker.
Thomas Spock, chair of the Board of Managers, welcomed all by observing students represented 374 people with 374 different stories. He noted the college differed from his experience as a 1978 graduate, being “richer in diversity which now contributes to a wide-ranging alumni body.”
President Valerie Smith introduced Iris Chan, chosen by her peers as class speaker. The biology major claimed to be not much of a talker, but she admitted Swarthmore “may have taught me a thing or two about writing and speaking.” She spoke of her individual experience, but said each student “had a journey which meandered through some version of the impossible.”
For one graduate, the path meandered substantially longer and with a degree of uncertainty. Charles “Kip” Davis was Class of 1975 and, by all accounts, a notable figure on campus. He was the first AfricanAmerican elected as senior class president, and spoke at commencement, yet did not receive his degree. Davis explained a combination of factors, which critically included an incomplete thesis.
Davis, from of a family of esteemed academics, said he looked at the then present and not beyond. “I was active in theater at Swarthmore, and wanted to go into theater as a career. I thought ‘I don’t need a degree.’”
Davis built a successful career with a large international research market- ing firm in New York. As he became involved with African-American alumni activities, Davis appeared to have a growing sense of unease, “I thought it didn’t feel right.” Concurrently, he was enthusiastically taking some “lifelong learning” courses.
Inevitably, the pursuit of his degree became a goal, and he gained support of Swarthmore College administration, particularly Dr. Sarah Willie-LeBreton, Chair of the Sociology Department. Although she was on sabbatical this last year, LeBreton worked with Davis on his newly created thesis, an exploration of Oak
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