Valedictory Address

“Valedictorian Address – Luigi Rocca” (25 May 1989): 1-9. (UA Case 68, Box 2)

Words cannot begin to describe how honored and privileged I feel to have been chosen to give this address on behalf of the graduating class of 1989. Words also cannot begin to describe how much I have agonized over this speech. The thought of giving my speech on behalf of over a thousand of our family members and friends has given me nightmares and probably an ulcer. I think I can account for my anxiousness by the fact that I am very proud to have been a UNB student and it is consequently very important to me that, by the end of this speech, I will have brought out that same pride in you. I have consulted with many of you as to what you wanted to hear in your valedictory and though the comments and suggestions I received varied widely, they all had a common theme. That theme was best exemplified by the response a good friend gave to me. He said “Luigi – be good, be brief and be gone.” The only thing I know for certain is that in a few minutes I will be gone – time will tell whether I’ll be brief or good.

I think it is very fitting that our families and friends are here today with us to share in this celebration and I’d like to take this opportunity to welcome each and every one of them. This day is as much theirs as it is ours because they have shared in our troubles as well as in our triumphs and have been pillars of strength on our behalf, providing us with emotional as well as financial support. The pride that we all share today is our achievement is surpassed only by that of our parents. To them especially, a warm, sincere and well-deserved thank-you. The hardships you have endured and the sacrifices you have made so that we might have the privilege of obtaining a university education have not gone unnoticed. We are indeed grateful for all you have done for us.

As well, we the class of ’89 are deeply indebted to the professors of UNB. One of the concerns that we all had before deciding to come to UNB was the quality of education that we would receive. In particular, with a university the size of UNB, we wondered how much individual attention we would receive from our professors. I was told that at UNB I would become just another number. Well – nothing could have been further from the truth. The vast majority of the professors at UNB have shown, time and time again, understanding, patience, and dedication to ensuring that we are well prepared to meet the challenges of the future.

The quality of teaching and learning at UNB is perhaps best illustrated by the results of the NSERC Postgraduate Scholarships competition. This is a national annual scholarship competition, open to all graduating students in science, engineering, forestry, computer science, and mathematics. Each scholarship is worth $13, 500 and may be held up for up to four years at any university in Canada or abroad. Not surprisingly, the competition for these scholarships is intense. For the past decade UNB has always finished in the top ten universities in the country and, if you adjust for size, we have never finished lower than third. Twice we have been first. This year 37 graduating students from UNB won NSERC Scholarships putting UNB, on a per capita basis, second in the nation. This is indeed academic excellence of which we should all be proud.

I think that it would be appropriate at this time to talk about the significance and magnitude of our achievement in receiving a University degree. I’m sure that many, if not most of us have, at one time or another, had our doubts about why we were here. We have endured some hardships of our own and it is perfectly natural and legitimate at this point to ask the question “Was it worth it?” By that I mean was it worth all those tedious assignments, exorbitant essays, 8:30 classes, three hour exams, torturous all-nighters and, in rare instances, boring lectures. Of course, the answer to this is self-evident, especially when you consider that just 10% of all Canadian adults have a university degree. This is an impressive statistic in itself but we won’t know the precise value of the piece of paper we are about to receive until we are out in the workforce competing for those jobs and competing for those promotions. Employers know that University graduates have had to overcome adversity, work under pressure and, by virtue of the degrees they hold, have succeeded. We have received a genuine education as opposed to mere training and because of this we leave here well-prepared to make our mark on the world. We must remember our experiences, good and bad, and use them to our benefit. The prospect of leaving the friendly confines of this university to pursue our careers is indeed, at times, a frightening one. Many of us are still waiting to hear from prospective employers and, for those of us who would like to further our education, from other university programs. I know the feeling because I’m going through it myself. It’s frustrating and it’s scary but as John F. Kennedy said once, “We have come too far, we have suffered too much, to despair the future now.” In other words, don’t worry, if we can get through this, we can get through anything. The seeds of our future success have been planted at UNB – all we have to do now is take our well-rounded educations and show the world what we’re made of.

In addition to a quality education, UNB has provided us with many opportunities to participate in extracurricular activities. These activities whether they be varsity sports, student government or any other of the over 70 clubs and societies, have played an integral role in enhancing student life on campus. Through my involvement in student government I had the good fortune to be associated with many people who care and give for their time selflessly to make life more enjoyable for the rest of us. I’d like to give you a few examples.

Our Orientation program is the envy of universities all over North America and is a perennial winner of various awards at the annual National Orientation Directors Association conferences. Our alcohol awareness program, SMART PACC, which was conceived and implemented by UNB students, has been picked up by many other universities and has even caught the attention of American policy makers.

The Brunswickan is the oldest and one of the best student publications in Canada. If you’ve seen other student newspapers you know that the Brunswickan is in a class by itself.

One of the oldest traditions that we have at UNB is the Red ‘n Black Revue which has been put on for 42 years straight. If you’ve never seen a Red ‘n Black Revue, you’re really missing something – it’s a fantastic show put on by students every year – and only at UNB.

International students have made their contributions with such popular events as Caribbean night and African night. Learning about other cultures and celebrating our differences is part of what makes UNB so special. The world could take lessons form us in that department.

I can remember early in the second term, when despite slim playoff hopes for the hockey team, over a thousand UNB students were present, complete with bullhorns, foam hands and painted faces, to see our team outplay and outclass our cross-campus rivals, the STU Tommies, to win the game 4-2. They made us proud that day and the celebration afterwards at the Social Club was, in itself, a thing of beauty – I’ll never forget it. I know from speaking to friends and colleagues from other universities that in terms of the number of variety of extracurricular activities available, UNB has no equal. We should all be very thankful and we should all be very proud.

Due to obvious time constraints, I’m not able to stand up here and list all the things that we ought to be proud of. If I could, the list would be long indeed. It is my hope that the administration will continue to place extracurricular activities on a high priority level. It is my hope that the administration will continue to place extracurricular activities on a high priority level. It is also my hope that the students who follow us will strive to co-ordinate their energies because if they do, they will do some really amazing things on this campus. Whether you’ve served in student government, been a member of a club or society, or even attended a hockey game, you’ve done your part to make our years at UNB memorable ones. Because of our involvement in these activities we leave UNB as well-rounded individuals and consequently better equipped to meet the challenges of the future.

No matter what anyone says, the thing that we will remember most about UNB is the people. University has been, at times, an emotional roller-coaster ride and throughout it all our friends have been there. We’ve seen each other through the good times and the bad – we’ve studied hard and partied hard and we did it together. I don’t think I’m being idealistic when I say that UNB has more than its fair share of nice people. To be accepted at UNB you don’t have to be the best-looking or the best athlete or the biggest partier or the best dresser or anything – you just have to be you. I know from experience that this isn’t necessarily the case at other universities and this is another part of what makes UNB special.

This speech is supposed to be a farewell address but I refuse to say goodbye to UNB because I believe that the friendships we have made here must and will continue. There are people we will never forget and through such continuing friendships the memories of our time here will remain vivid and clear.

I came across a passage written by Charles Dickens which I think sums up our experiences here at UNB quite nicely:

It was the best of time, it was
the worst of times: it was the age
of wisdom, it was the age of
foolishness.

I have a sneaking suspicion that we won’t begin to appreciate just how good we had it here for about another 20 years when we’re in the midst of our first mid-life crisis: You’re 20 lbs. overweight, with a receding hairline, the bank has just foreclosed on the mortgage, the wide is nagging and the kids are rebelling. Mark my words, you’re going to look back on these years and say to yourself “Yup – those were the good old days.”

Thank you and the best of luck to you all.