Graduation Address

"Remarks Delivered by Margaret N. McCain." (27 May 1993). (UA Case 67, Box 2)

Mr. Chancellor, your Honour, Mr. Premier, Mr. President, distinguished platform guests, graduates, ladies and gentlemen.

If I may be permitted, I would like to don my Mount Allison hat for a moment, so that I may more appropriately convey to you, Mr. Chancellor, the greetings and good wishes of your sister institution, Mount Allison University. And on their behalf, I wish to extend to the University of New Brunswick our congratulations for having chosen so wisely. It is my hope, sir, that you will find your duties here as rewarding as I have found mine.

I would also like to say, Mr. Chancellor, how deeply thankful I am for the honour you have bestowed upon me today. In the role of a university chancellor, I have known the special joy derived from conferring honorary degrees. But let me assure you, that experience pales by comparison with the gratification which comes from being a recipient. It is with genuine humility and profound happiness that I gratefully accept this designation, and will wear the red and black colours of this distinguished university with pride.

When I graduated from "that other" university south of here, in 1954, our convocation speaker was the illustrious son of New Brunswick, Sir James Dunn—a name very familiar to this campus. To say the least, I was totally awed by the stature and achievements of this impressive man, and never imagined that I too would one day be the recipient of a similar high honour.

Yet to my infinite surprise, here I am—and that suggests to me that in some 40-odd years, any one of you graduates could be here as well.

In truth, I must admit I am also rather astonished that the source of this tribute is the University of New Brunswick, an acknowledgment that calls for a brief explanation. You see, when I was a student in the '50s, the rivalry between the predominantly male UNB and what the students here referred to as 'that girls' school' at the lower end of the province, was quite intense.

On those occasions when our football team thrashed the UNB team, the victory was sweet indeed—but when won on UNB turf, it was the inspiration for a grand celebration. Following a triumph of this variety in the fall of 1953, I have to confess that I personally led a parade of several hundred cheering students down University Avenue, to the centre of Queen Street, where we rubbed salt in your wounds. We halted traffic for 30 to 45 minutes, cheering, singing and loudly proclaiming the superiority of Mt. A. The generous honour you grant me today is therefore a reflection of UNBs tolerant and forgiving spirit—and my remarks are, at least in part, an act of repentance.

On a deeper level, for me, this honour, also symbolizes that our sister universities in New Brunswick ultimately share a fundamental commitment not just to higher education, but to better education—a cause that is truly close to my heart. I believe this is a vitally important cause for all of us. And all of us must play a role in achieving the goal of better education.

Several years ago, following a convocation at Mount Allison, a father proudly approached the president, and introduced his son as "the investment". Clearly, he was referring to the financial sacrifices parents must make to educate their children. But he didn't call his son "the expense".

I am certain this father would agree with the president emeritus of Harvard University, Dr. Derek Bok, who said, "if you think education is expensive, try ignorance. "

In recent years, the powerful message that education is critical to the health and wealth of our nation has increased in intensity. I would like to join the chorus of Canadian economists and business leaders who are sounding the alarm: improving education is vital to maintaining the good life which we so often take for granted. It is imperative that we recognize and adapt to the rapid changes taking place in our world or Canada will fall behind.

This will not be easy, because Canadians have been lulled into a false sense of security. Cushioned by our rich natural resource base, we are quick to believe our status as an advanced nation will endure forever.

However, it is apparent that in the world you will soon lead, human resources—the knowledge, skills, ideas, entrepreneurship and capacity for innovation of our people will take precedence over natural resources. clearly education is the engine of prosperity for this decade and into the twenty-first century.

Our health care, environment, social benefits, employment and quality of life will all predicate on the quality of our educational system. The New Brunswick Commission on Excellence in Education has recognized this. I commend their efforts and endorse the vision of Premier Frank McKenna who has recognized that economic advancement depends on educational policy.

As painful as the lesson may be, the Commission has taught us that our educational system lacks direction and long-term vision, and as legendary baseball player Yogi Berra once said, "if you don't know where you are going, you might end up somewhere else." If we are to achieve higher quality education, we must first have higher standards, as well as better yardsticks for measuring performance.

This is the challenge presented to us, and the question is: what are we going to do about it?

Many might be inclined to seek a quick fix by calling for more government money.

But even if our governments were not burdened by overwhelming deficits, and had the necessary financial resources to increase their contributions, would this be the answer?

Canada already pours four billion dollars--or six per cent of our gross domestic product—into our schools, colleges and universities. On the world scale, this is an effort worthy of a silver medal—but regrettably, the results are not consistent with the public investment.

Perhaps, then, the solution for funding and guidance lies with our corporate sector, particularly since that is where the cries of concern are loudest. But remember the golden rule of business: “he who holds the gold, makes the rules.” The corporate world is clamoring for greater accountability, performance and efficiency in the educational system, and certainly these are matters which demand attention—though not necessarily to the beat of the corporate drum.

Corporations can and do make a valuable contribution to our educational system, but entrepreneurs are not educators and maintaining some distance is desirable.

Money alone, I must argue, is not the answer: what we need is leadership, based on cooperative personal involvement and a genuine partnership between educators and those who have a vested interest in education. And that leadership cannot necessarily come from universities themselves.

Like many of our other public institutions, universities are grappling with competing demands, and unprecedented change.

The challenges facing university administrators have been recognized, and I believe, in time will be overcome through a combination of enlightened flexibility, adaptation and sheer determination.

For us and for now, the process must start with an acknowledgment that lifelong learning is the essential ingredient for our economic growth and competitiveness. And we cannot passively depend on "the system" to continue to do it all on its own.

The foundation for achieving our educational and economic goals must begin with the creation of a healthy learning environment. In this we cannot ignore the compelling evidence that abuse is a serious learning impediment which demands a concerted societal response to eliminate it. I want to take a moment to commend the University of New Brunswick for joining in partnership with the MMFF to establish the first ever family violence research centre in Canada. This project, designed to find answers and solutions to society's most serious social illness will, I believe, serve as a model for future joint university/community initiatives in response to a societal need. It merits our highest praise.

But to return to my broader theme—the need to find all-encompassing solutions to our educational challenge is so monumental that to effect real change we cannot abdicate responsibility to any single constituency. It must be understood, embraced and owned by all segments of society—in order that we may overcome our innate resistance to meaningful and productive change.

I am not a politician, I am not a business woman, —nor am I an economist or educator. And since my doctorate is honorary, not earned, some may be inclined to consider my advice suspect. As Neil Simon once said "would you let an honorary mechanic fix your brand new Mercedes?" All due modesty aside, if I bring any strength to my convictions, it originates from my genuine belief that the grass roots of society have a unique capacity to achieve substantive change.

Indeed, it cannot be imposed from the top. It must come from the bottom up—not the reverse. And it must come despite obstacles created by fear and a suspicion of ideas that are new and different. Because the ultimate question before us is: do we really have a choice? The alternative—a declining standard of living- is simply not an option. And this is the point where I, and we as a society, must turn directly to you graduates.

It is part of the rite of passage during graduation ceremonies for graduates to be charged with a special task, and to be told that they are "tomorrows leaders".

Sadly, in our all too cynical age, this traditional call to action has come to be regarded by many as a cliché. But the fact remains you are tomorrow's leaders; and tomorrow arrived today. Your
participation and leadership are needed as never before

During the next anxiety-filled decade, your youthful confidence, your capacity for flexibility and your ability to master change will be Canada's greatest asset—especially if we are to build the educational system on which all else rests.

For that reason, and as a first measure towards achieving a much larger goal, I want to leave you with a relatively simple, yet practical request—and if you remember nothing else, I hope you will remember this! When you depart from this encaenia with your diploma in your hand, please don't take it home and abandon it on a shelf to accumulate dust. Rather, frame it and hang it in a highly visible spot, not merely as a symbol of your personal accomplishment, but to serve as a daily reminder that education is your investment in our common future.

Let your diploma motivate you to focus your energies and become passionately involved in education for the rest of your lives. And don’t wait until your own children have grown and are ready to be sitting in the places where you sit now to make that investment: start doing it now.

In Schools for a New Century, the Commission on Excellence in Education presented a host of specific recommendations to address the issues and goals it identified as needing a response. Two sections and two words relate directly to you, and I repeat them now to bring the many abstract concepts I have spoken of down to earth: partnership and leadership.

As future parents, trustees, community, business and labour leaders, as future academics, public servants, politicians and as teachers, recognize that you must be personally involved in the education system. To quote what I believe is a key passage from the report: “education has to be a societal project through which many groups forge alliances to create the common cause and provide the human and material resources that are necessary,”

If you become full shareholders in our educational system, and if you engage in the process of lifelong learning. your prospects, New Brunswick's prospects—indeed, Canada's prospects - are dramatically enhanced.

You have already accomplished a great deal. I extend my congratulations to the graduates and to your families. It is my wish that each of you who is graduating today will find joy and fulfillment in your individual life's journey.

It is a privilege to share my thoughts with you on this most special occasion in your lives; I hope you will cherish this milestone and reflect on its significance for many years to come.

May the blessings of God go with you. Thank you.