The Cougar's Byte

Issue date: 6/18/07 Section: Campus Life

The New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) was packed on May 8th for the culmination of 653 graduate students' hard work. Proud family members and friends were gathered to cheer on their graduate, as they filed into the theater. The room was filled with cheers, laughter and nervousness. This nervousness was for the unknown, but as Dr. Farahi stated during his speech, "No one is prepared to change the world for the better, better than Kean University graduates." He continued, "No one is better prepared to take on the world than Kean University graduates." When someone has that much belief in you nothing else matters. During the ceremony three honorary doctorates were also handed out to Peggy Dougherty, Jerry Izenberg, and Stanford R. Ovshinsky. The whole ceremony was planned to honor the graduates' hard work and commitment to education. So as the lights went down the excitement grew! The New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) was packed on May 8th for the culmination of 653 graduate students' hard work. Proud family members and friends were gathered to cheer on their graduate, as they filed into the theater. The room was filled with cheers, laughter and nervousness. This nervousness was for the unknown, but as Dr. Farahi stated during his speech, "No one is prepared to change the world for the better, better than Kean University graduates." He continued, "No one is better prepared to take on the world than Kean University graduates." When someone has that much belief in you nothing else matters. During the ceremony three honorary doctorates were also handed out to Peggy Dougherty, Jerry Izenberg, and Stanford R. Ovshinsky. The whole ceremony was planned to honor the graduates' hard work and commitment to education. So as the lights went down the excitement grew!

Everyone had the pleasure of listening to Maria Bartiromo, this year's commencement speaker. Bartiromo is a nationally recognized business news anchor and reporter. She made history when in 1995 she became the first journalist to report live from the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on a daily basis. She reported from there for a morning business program, Squawk Box for 10 years. Today, she is the anchor of CNBC's Closing Bell with Maria Bartiromo and is the host and managing editor of the nationally syndicated Wall Street Journal Report with Maria Bartiromo. Her commencement speech was very inspirational for the graduates; she said she has lived by three rules, "Love what you do, Work really, really hard, and Do the right thing. She has lived by these rules in her personal and professional life and has gotten very far. She made the graduates feel like they could do anything they wanted as long as they had the right attitude and the drive to overcome adversities.

The first Honorary Doctorate recipient was Peggy Dougherty '79. She is currently the Deputy Director of Development at The Newark Museum in Newark, NJ. Dougherty's job is to oversee membership promotions, travel campaigns and strategic development of volunteer programs. She also is in charge of securing large donations from individuals. She does so by building a relationship with the contributors as to make them feel appreciated and listened to. Because of the relationships she builds with the contributors she has been able to make the museum run with less state funding. When she first started working at the museum, its budget was mostly state funding, 95percent to be exact. Now it receives less than 50 percent state funding, with the rest coming from contributors. She has made great contributions to the museum gaining her the Doctorate of Humane Letters.

The second Honorary Doctorate went to Jerry Izenberg. He was a Sports Columnist for The Star Ledger. Nominated for the Pulitzer Prize 15 times and member of the New Jersey Literary Hall of Fame, Izenberg worked as the Sports Columnist for 55 years. He retired this past winter after years of reporting every sports event imaginable. He has also been the writer, producer, and narrator for television networks such as ESPN Classic and won an Emmy for directing and narrating A Man Named Lombardi. Izenberg was not only loved by sports fanatics because in 1979 he founded Project Pride, a nonprofit organization designed to raise money for underprivileged kids in Newark. The organization has since been able to send more than 1,000 of the city's kids to colleges. The organization also runs after-school sports and recreation programs. Project Pride does not use any governmental money, it runs solely on donations and for the past 27 years its biggest contributor was the Pride Bowl. The Pride Bowl is a sprint football game between the Army and Navy Academies and Kean University has been the home to the game for the past two years. Izenberg has also been the author of nine books. Jerry Izenberg has made an indelible mark in sports journalism during his 55 years of service. He was honored with the Doctorate of Humane Letters, as a show of appreciation.

The last Honorary Doctorate went to Stanford R. Ovshinsky. He is the co-founder, President and Chief Scientist of ECD Ovonics, Inc. ECD Ovonics Inc. is committed to creating non-polluting, non-climate-changing energy sources. He was honored by Time magazine in 1999 as Hero for the Planet. Ovshinsky was forced to drop out of school during The Great Depression to help his family, but that didn't stop him from gaining success. He became a skilled machinist during World War II, where he earned his first patent. More than 50 years after his first patent, Ovshinsky has earned more than 300 U.S. patents, making him one of the most productive inventors in American history. He has also authored more than 275 scientific papers. His research has also given rise to a new science. Ovonics, which he coined from "Ovshinsky" and "electronics" is a field of electronics. Stanford Ovshinsky is one of the greatest minds alive today and because of his brilliance he is trying to save the earth so that is why he is being honored with a Doctorate in Science.

During the ceremony, a musical medley was sung by Jubilation under the direction of the Rev. Stefanie R. Minatee '82. During their last song, the dancers from The Well Performance Project at Kean University came out on stage and gave new meaning to breathtaking. The stage was alive with the sound of music as the singers sang their heart out and the dancers showed the audience why they were the best at Kean University.

The presentation of diplomas was a great part of the night. Graduates walked to the stage so proudly. They were finally done and that little piece of paper proved it. No more classes, tests, papers, and presentations. That tassel was definitely worth the hassle. They were graduates; KU graduates and they were proud of it. Congratulations to all of the graduates and don't forget to come back and visit KU.

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