1999 USC Commencement Address

Governor Jim Hodges
May 7, 1999


To prepare for this speech, I asked the Historian’s Office to prepare a brief synopsis of what the University was like in 1977,
the year in which many of you were born.

It might interest you to know that the commencement speaker in May 1977 was Dr. Arthur R. Burns, Chairman of the Federal
Reserve System, who gave a speech entitled "The Significance of Our Productivity Lag."

Maybe they should have received credit for that lecture.

I can’t imagine what the Class of 1977 must have thought about while they were sitting through that speech. Many of them
were facing uncertain futures in tough economic times, with inflation on the rise and jobs becoming scarce.

Think about how much has changed since then.

In 1977, Bill Gates was just another college dropout.

In 1977, Ted Turner owned a single television station, and it wasn’t even a "super-station" back then.

In 1977, Oprah Winfrey was a news anchor at a small television station in Baltimore, Maryland.

In 1977, the Thomas Cooper Library, the Coker Life Sciences Building, and Gambrell Hall were all brand new.

In 1977, the South Carolina Honors College had just been approved, and no one had ever heard of the term "Palmetto Ivy."

In 1977, Jim Hodges was a young, skinny, college sophomore living in LaBorde Dormitory in the Honeycombs.

And in 1977, people camped out for days to see a little-known movie named Star Wars – well, maybe not so much has
changed.

In the span of your lifetimes, you have seen the Berlin Wall fall down, Bart Simpson grow up, Hurricane Hugo blow in with a
bang, the Soviet Union go out with a whimper,

You’ve seen the birth of rap and hip-hop music, the death and rebirth of disco, the rise of Hootie and the Blowfish …

And to my friend Lou Holtz, let me add that these graduates have also witnessed the 1984 "Black Magic" Season, Sterling
Sharpe, Todd Ellis, Steve Taneyhill, Duce Staley, and the 1995 victory in the Carquest Bowl.

If we can beat Communism in your lifetimes, then we can beat the Chicken Curse, too.

The point of that brief history lesson is that the world is changing constantly.

In 1974, many of the University’s oldest buildings had deteriorated to the point where demolition had become a distinct
possibility for some.

Think about that for a moment -- wrecking balls on the Horseshoe! It seems unthinkable today.

But in 1974, thanks to the foresight of the University and the assistance of the General Assembly, the University began a
ten-year, $6 million renovation project that brought the Horseshoe’s buildings up to modern standards and landscaped the
grounds as they look now.

A 21st Century Vision for the University of South Carolina

The renovation of the Horseshoe proves that with the proper vision, a University can respect its past while looking forward to
the future.

In order to successfully meet the challenges of the 21st century, we must embrace a comprehensive vision for higher education.

That vision is taking shape today at USC.

Part of that vision demands that we honor the rich heritage of a liberal arts education.

In the movie Dead Poets Society, Robin Williams teaches his students that: "Medicine, law, business, engineering -- these are
noble pursuits, and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love -- these are what we stay alive for."

It is those virtues that are nurtured by the liberal arts.

It is not merely the duty of a university to provide job skills -- a university must prepare its students to be thoughtful citizens of
the wider world.

The liberal arts ennoble and enrich our lives. They allow students to look beyond the narrow confines of single discipline and
draw connections from many disparate sources, gaining new insight into a particular problem or challenge that faces our society.

And Carolina is honoring the liberal arts.

One example is the First Year Reading Experience. In this program, incoming students read the same work of literature over
the summer and then share their reading experiences with one another and with faculty in specially designed forums.

This past year, 800 students read Lorrie Moore’s Who Will Run the Frog Hospital? In previous years, students have read
works by William Faulkner, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Pat Conroy.

These small discussion groups, with a low student-teacher ratio of about 10 to 1, are at the heart of a liberal arts education.

And for those that argue that a liberal arts degree is not financially rewarding, I’d like to point out that some of Carolina’s
wealthiest alumni – and some of the largest contributors to the University – hold liberal arts degrees.

They include political science major Darla Moore, who gave $25 million to the School of Business, and Robert C. McNair of
Houston, a psychology student who recently contributed $20 million to endow scholarships at USC.

A Strong Financial Foundation

Which brings me to my next point – building Carolina’s endowment for the 21st century.

Last year, Carolina’s endowment grew at a faster rate than any other major university in America.

And USC’s Capital Campaign goal of $300 million is sure to be shattered. We can be proud of that.

Carolina alumni are doing their part, providing a strong financial foundation for the University’s future.

But state government has a role to play as well.

Earlier this spring, the General Assembly passed my Education Lottery initiative, which will be voted on in the 2000 election. I
have stated from the outset that lottery proceeds should be constitutionally committed to improving public education, including
higher education. The lottery amendment passed by the House and the Senate does just that.

I want to devote a portion of lottery proceeds toward enhancing merit-based college scholarships for worthy high school
students, and create need-based scholarships for deserving students.

Currently, South Carolina has the second-highest college tuition in the Southeast. That is unacceptable.

Education is the great leveler of our democracy, because it is the one thing in life that can never be taken away from you.

Thomas Jefferson once said "Enlighten the people generally, and tyranny and oppression will vanish like evil spirits at the dawn
of day."

When high tuition makes higher education inaccessible to the general population, then the perpetuation of our democracy is
threatened. That is why I am committed to provide resources that will stem the tide of rising tuition, and bring South Carolina’s
tuition rates back into line with the Southeastern average.

Raising Our Sights

Carolina has set an admirable goal – accreditation by the Association of American Universities.

Of the 62 member institutions of the AAU, each is recognized as a national-caliber university. And the University of South
Carolina is taking dramatic steps to win admission into that elite club.

Carolina has raised its admissions standards over the last few years. And rather than see a decline in enrollment, applications
have shot up to over the 10,000 mark. The number of National Merit Scholars at USC has increased thirty-five percent over
last year. This success proves an old truism in higher education: good students attract more good students.

Carolina is hiring and retaining top-notch faculty in tenure-track positions, developing a $500 million Facilities Master Plan that
will build new dorms and beautify the campus with greenspace, and winning millions of dollars in grants for state-of-the-art
research.

So in addition to "raising a health to Carolina," we’re raising academic standards, raising money from alumni, and raising our
sights toward becoming a national-caliber University.

A Guide to Success in the 21st Century: Some Simple Rules

Commencement speeches are supposed to be full of advice for the newly minted college graduates.

On the Top 40 right now, there is a commencement address that’s been set to music. You might have heard it on the radio. It’s
called "Wear Sunscreen."

The song recites a number of simple rules to live by, rules like "Do one thing everyday that scares you" and "Get to know your
parents – you never know when they’ll be gone for good" and, of course, "Wear sunscreen."

Meanwhile, Wall Street tycoon Dick Jenrette has written a fine book, The Contrarian Manager, which is full of simple yet
unconventional rules he has learned in his 40-year career in investment banking.

Rules like "Hire people smarter than you," and "Tired people make bad decisions."

And columnist George Will, who will be speaking tomorrow, is fond of a few simple rules of his own.

George Will has stated that most of the ills that trouble today’s society can be remedied by following a few "micro rules."

Rules such as not smoking, to watch what you eat and drink, to postpone having children until you’ve completed your
education, or something as simple as putting the shower curtain on the inside of the tub.

It seems like simple rules are all the rage these days.

Now, I’m no Wall Street tycoon,

And I don’t expect my commencement speech to be set to music.

And I’m certainly not going to sing to you.

But if there is one piece of advice I can add, one simple rule to live by, then it is this:

Goodwill is free. Goodwill is contagious. Goodwill is good business. Goodwill is good health.

So in your lives, be sure to share small acts of goodwill, which come at no cost to you. And be thankful for the goodwill
showered upon you by friends, family, and even the kindness of strangers.

The South Carolina Century

In conclusion, I am reminded at a time such as this that other leaders, from other states, have proclaimed that the next 100
years belong to them. They’re wrong.

Today I ask that you join with me in support of our efforts to build better schools for a better future.

To build a better University of South Carolina, one that honors the liberal arts, has ample state and private resources, and
adheres to the highest standards.

So that one day, one hundred years from now, a future commencement speaker will remind his audience that the 21st century
was an era of unrivaled prosperity, boundless ability, and educational opportunity in South Carolina.

And when they play "2001" at the football games, they will do so not to remember some long-lost golden age, but to
commemorate the first year of a new millennium – the first year of "The South Carolina Century."