POMP AND CIRCUMSTANCE

Author: Sarah Shaikh

As the rest of the student body prepares for exams and moving out for the summer, the seniors on campus are preparing for the commencement of their lives after college. As exams come to a close on May 23, the staff, faculty and students will prepare for senior week which concludes on Sunday, May 28 with commencement festivities, including the procession as well as speeches from Lauren Curatolo '06, the student speaker, and Ann Veneman, the commencement speaker.

Chosen after an intense audition process by the Senior Committee, Lauren Curatolo is a Middlebury Posse 4 scholar from Bayside, N.Y. A Women's and Gender Studies major, Lauren is the president of Feminist Action at Middlebury (FAM), co-chair of the Senior Committee, and co-director of diversity for the Student Government Association. Curatolo is extremely excited about connecting with her peers as the student speaker: "I wanted my speech to be serious, thrilling, exciting and funny - reflective of our class spirit."

She plans to focus her speech on the importance of relationships with an overall theme of civic service and giving back and thinks, "the most important message to send the Class of 2006 is that our time here has been inspiring and to not forget the relationships we have forged at Middlebury. Also, in my speech I ask my peers to embrace the fact that life is a process and that when we leave Midd we have a chance to start anew again. We must not forget to work for human rights. We have to continually affect positive change in this world and in ourselves. That is the overall message of my speech - to be proactive in our world."

The commencement speaker for the Class of 2006 is Ann Veneman. Veneman is the executive director of UNICEF and a former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture under the Bush Administration. In a March 16 article in The Middlebury Campus, President of the College Ronald D. Leibowitz stated that he was "looking for a speaker who would provide an important and relevant message to students who would be leaving the relatively protected confines of Middlebury to pursue various jobs, volunteer work and studies." However, after the news was released, The Campus received an opinions submission from a group of professors who felt that choosing Veneman "is inconsistent with the values of the College and with the values of most Vermonters. Those who applaud the College's efforts to support local farms, for example, will find her long association with agribusiness and genetically modified foods troubling, to say the least."

Veneman's stance on globalization aside, many seniors feel that the choice does not represent them. One of the biggest issues plaguing the senior class about Veneman, is that is not a "big name." Henry Marshall '06.5 said, "I'm not thrilled about her, I feel the College could have gone bigger after Giuliani last year. The head of UNICEF doesn't seem as poignant." Similarly, Kimberly Hults '06 said, "Once a speaker is invited it is important that the community respect the invitee; however, that said I have talked with some teachers, who I really respect, and feel that based on what they have said and what I have read it seems that she was not the best choice."

Curatolo agrees with her peers, but has concluded that regardless of "the big name," commencement will be special. "Personally," she said, "I would have loved to have someone like Barack Obama who is an exciting speaker and would have been extremely powerful. Veneman is not really a 'big name' and really only came to the spotlight during the mad cow disease frenzy. I think this is what bothers a lot of my peers. We were waiting for this huge 'name' and didn't get it. UNICEF ultimately does good work, so we shall see what happens."

She continued, "Regardless of whether or not people agree with the speaker, it is going to be a really wonderful day. Ultimately, some people would have been disappointed with any speaker who was chosen. I am sure there are even some people who are saying "Lauren Curatolo? What?" All I know is that it is going to be a truly special day. People will remember graduation for a very long time."

This year's commencement will be presenting six honorary degrees. Veneman will be receiving an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters; by her side will be Dr. Robin Bell '80, Dr. Richard Hodes '75, and Alec Webb who will both be receiving honorary doctorates in Science, Senator James M. Jeffords (I-Vt.) will receive an honorary Doctor of Laws degree, and Lihua Yu, the grandmother of senior Tara Vanacore, will awarded an honorary Doctor of Letters.