Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture
Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

A newsletter for faculty, staff and students

May-June 2005 • Vol. 31, No. 3

Commencement speaker Megan Hardy has Bumpers College in her blood. One grandfather was dean of the College from 1965 to 1987 and other is an alumnus and former research associate in the Entomology Department. Both parents are alumni, and her fiancé was one of this year’s graduates. Pictured from left are father Scott Hardy, grandfather and Dean Emeritus Glenn Hardy, Megan, fiancé Jason Wheeler, mother Kathy Hardy and grandfather Gerald Wallis.

Commencement 2005

Address by Megan Hardy, First Rank Senior Scholar

Good afternoon Ladies and Gentlemen. Thank you so much for being here today.  Fellow graduates, I want to congratulate you on your accomplishments and I want you to know that it is truly an honor to stand here before you today. 

As an Apparel Studies Major, I have spent 4 years studying and learning about fashion, trends, custom pattern fitting and draping, but today I stand in front of you in a gown that fits everyone that is the same height as me. Despite my love of fashion, I am proud today to be wearing this generic gown rather than the latest Vera Wang. Historians believe that gowns were first worn in the academic setting because they would keep scholars warm in the unheated buildings. As early as the 12th century, gowns became the symbol of academia and were adopted in the United States as the official attire in 1895. Our hats or ‘mortarboards’, have origins in the 16th century, and only in the 18th century was a fabric covered mortarboard used, and in the 19th century the tassel was added.  The reason it is called a "mortarboard" is because it resembles a tool of the same name, used by masons.  Our regalia is no Dior or Chanel but it is true, they do keep you warm!

This is a very special day to me and my family.  My family has traditions rich in the Dale Bumpers College. Both of my parents have degrees from Bumpers College and both my grandfathers have ties to the College. After my parents met, my dad convinced my mom to give up her full ride to John Brown University and come to school with him.  He eventually talked her into a major within the College as well.  Gerald Wallis, my grandfather on my mom’s side, obtained a B.S. and a Master’s from the College and worked as a research assistant for several years. My other grandfather, Dr. Glenn Hardy, was dean of Bumpers College from 1965 to 1987.        

When I enrolled in the University, I, of course, found my home in the Bumpers College and I eventually convinced Jason Wheeler, the man I’m marrying next weekend, to major in Agribusiness and he is also graduating with me today. I truly believe that the couple that studies agriculture together stays together.  The College here is now, not just a part of stories that I’ve heard, but has become incorporated into the fabric of my life story. 

So… obviously, Bumpers College is very special to me and my family and has become somewhat of a tradition. Even if you do not have that same tradition within your family, I know that you all have a special place in your hearts for this college. I encourage you to begin that tradition today.

There are many memories from my college experience that I will take with me.

I take with me the memory of being in Brough Dining Hall during my freshman year, eating breakfast, and hearing someone come in saying that an airplane had hit the World Trade Center. I remember how no one believed him.

I take with me the memory of trying to find a new way to walk to class each day, in an ongoing effort to avoid construction.  But, somehow, the construction always seemed to move with me.  If I had a class in Old Main, that’s where the construction was. If all my classes were in the Agri Building, then that’s where the construction was.  But I guess it made each walk interesting!

I take with me the memory of the Tennessee vs. Arkansas football game in 2001 when we lost in the huge thunderstorm. My friends and I happened to be sitting in the upper deck, and in order to not get struck by lightning, we had to move into the stadium three times.  So the fact that I lived through it was the most memorable part for me.

I take with me the memory of my car being towed at the very beginning of my sophomore year after I was told to park there by the resident director on move-in day, and my wonderful day that followed. 

I take with me the memory of the old Plant Science 9 auditorium and the old HESC auditorium, where we sat in the same seats that our parents had sat in. Some day, I will brag to my children, that I was one of the first to attend class in the beautiful newly renovated rooms.  Alumni, who once sat where you are sitting today, helped to make those renovations possible. May we all be like them, and never forget our roots in this college.

I’m sure many of you will agree with me when I say that the true benchmark of this college is the faculty.  They’ve faithfully taught us everyday in the classroom, and many were able to teach us outside the classroom as well. Many go above and beyond the call of duty and I want to thank those professors, the ones with the courage to take 40 girls on a road trip to Dallas, or shuttle students to out of state conferences.  They’ve disciplined us, they’ve encouraged us, and they’ve helped us in times of trouble. They’ve been accessible, friendly, and always seem to put us first, no matter what else they had going on.  

I want to thank our advisors, who actually guided us from the beginning, advised us about what classes to take, and explained exactly how to register for classes.  As you may or may not know, many colleges at this university do not provide such excellent advisors.  Because of the outstanding advice I received, I became an advisor for many of my friends in the business college and I’m sure my friends are very thankful for my advisor as well. We should be very thankful for the examples that our faculty has set for us and we should all let them know how much they have meant to us.

For all of us graduating, today is the finish line, a celebration of our accomplishments and achievements in our college careers.  But tomorrow is another day, and what will become of us then?  Some of us are moving on to obtain graduate degrees, some are moving out into the work force, and for others the future is still somewhat hazy.  Life is filled with choices.  Decisions made from this day forward will move us in many different directions. I want to encourage you to set goals for yourself, and for your family, and from there make the necessary decisions to move you in the direction of those goals.  We need to stay focused and motivated to reach those goals, striving to become better individuals with each passing day.  Keep God first in all that you do. I was told that after college we no longer get graded every 15 weeks, so we must learn to measure our success in a different way. My wish for all of us is that we would all come to learn what that measure truly is.

Finally, in closing, I would like to thank my Dad for encouraging me to choose the University of Arkansas. For giving me the idea that I could go anywhere I wanted to… but, that I would only get money from him if I attended U of A.  This gave me just the right amount of inspiration and it was one of the better decisions of my life.

May God bless each and every one of you with the future of your choice, and if it is true that money is the world’s curse, then may the Lord smite you with it, and may you never recover.  Good luck out there, and remember, in life…cheer loud, be classy, and Go Hogs!