Davis College
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First, let me offer sincere congratulations to the 2009 graduating class of the Davis College of Agriculture, Forestry and Consumer Sciences. Today marks an important milestone for each of you, but it also a day of celebration for all of the people that have supported you through this journey. Please join me in thanking the family, friends, faculty members and others that have been instrumental in your achievement.

Secondly, I would like to thank Dean Hackney and Dr. Lewis for extending the invitation to share this day with you. I’m truly honored. Thank you.

I do have to admit, it’s a little intimidating for me to address you—an audience of soon-to be-college graduates. As a commencement speaker, the expectation is that you will either be a famous person or at least a very accomplished graduate. Add to that, your instructions are to “Say something inspiring” to an audience that just wants the ceremony to end so that the “real” celebration can begin.
In light of these facts, I promise to keep my remarks brief and, although I can’t guarantee that I will inspire everyone in the room, I will share with you some of my experiences and thoughts as well as pose a few challenges for your consideration this morning.

As fellow graduates of the Davis College of Agriculture, Forestry and Consumer Sciences, we all share memories of many rich traditions that we experienced during our WVU experience. From personal experience, I suspect that, in the years to come, you will meet other Mountaineers in the most unexpected places. For instance, during a conference call with representatives from at least 10 different federal agencies last year, I learned that there were two other Mountaineers on the line with me. Also, I enjoy wearing a WVU sweatshirt or jacket on the subway system in DC – the Metro. I’ve met countless fellow Mountaineers on an otherwise monotonous commute, and we’ve shared many stories about our respective times in Morgantown! I encourage you to share your stories and traditions that are uniquely WVU.

One of these traditions is not unique to WVU, but it is a tradition of which I am extremely proud – We are graduates of a land grant university. As you know, Senator Justin Morrill introduced a bill into Congress that President Abraham Lincoln signed into law on July 2, 1862. Morrill’s fundamental idea was to provide a broad segment of the population with a practical education that had direct relevance to their daily lives. The original mission of these institutions, as set forth in the first Morrill Act, was to teach agriculture, military tactics, and the mechanic arts as well as classical studies so that members of the working classes could obtain a liberal, practical education.

A tenet of today’s land grant system is the focus on three missions: teaching, research, and service. Today, as your time in the Davis College of Agriculture, Forestry, and Consumer Science draws to a close, I hope that you will reflect on how you have been touched by these three missions during your time at WVU. More importantly, however, I challenge you to adopt these missions as you take the next steps in your journey – whether it is to enter your chosen career or continue your formal education.

How have you been touched by the “Teaching” mission?

As we look back on our time at WVU, memories of various classes and laboratories should quickly come to mind. Or, perhaps, you are thinking about specific technical knowledge or skills that you learned.

However, I would argue that one of the most important skills that you have learned is the ability to teach yourself. You’ve learned how to identify problems and frame your questions in a logical manner. You’ve learned how to identify sources of available information, systematically query those resources, and assess the quality of the information that you obtained. You’ve learned how to assimilate and interpret information from a variety of sources to answer your questions in order to solve the problem you are facing. Moreover, I suspect that your experiences here in the Davis College of Agriculture, Forestry, and Consumer Science have instilled within each of you a desire to become lifelong learners.

Professionally and personally, I embrace the “teaching” mission and continual learning every day. I like to think that this is one of the primary reasons that I have been able to successfully transition between four different positions within the United States Department of Agriculture since I moved to the Washington, DC area. I will be the first person to recognize when I don’t know something, but I view that as an opportunity to learn something new.

Today, I challenge you to make “teaching” one of your personal missions and to learn something new every day. I see each of you continually learning new knowledge, skills and abilities both in your personal and professional lives and sharing these lessons with those around you.

How have you been touched by the “Research” mission?

One of the advantages of a land grant institution is the ability to learn from faculty members that are not merely lecturers. They are also researchers, often preeminent ones in their respective fields.

This dual role afforded us with many advantages during our formal education. Our lectures moved us beyond the textbooks, to the cutting edge of science. We had the opportunity to participate in multiple aspects of a research study. We didn’t just memorize the scientific method, we experienced it.

This wouldn’t be a commencement address without the obligatory quote, and I would like to share one of my favorite quotes from Albert Einstein with you, “Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand.” To me, this quote sums up the essence of research—using your imagination to innovate. It is the ability to generate new ideas and, more importantly, to use these new ideas to implement change in our world.

In my current position with the USDA, I have been charged with leading the “reinvention” of one of our longest standing animal disease eradication programs—the Bovine Tuberculosis Eradication Program. This responsibility has required research on various levels—from the scientific evaluation of the best TB testing methods available to the gathering of input from various stakeholders affected by USDA’s TB regulations. As the program coordinator, I must sort through, synthesize, and summarize many data points and ultimately, introduce a new concept and new approach to a program that’s almost 100 years old. This is one of the most exciting and most nerve wracking aspects of my position—converting pure research into practical guidelines that will be carried out by real people.

Of course, with a little imagination, I can picture any new concept I introduce being accepted wholeheartedly and without question by the affected industries. Research tells me, however, that my imagination on this point may be just a little off. Rarely is a new idea accepted by everyone right off the bat, and there are always more questions. That’s what makes research so important. The constant cycle of asking questions, generating hypotheses, testing ideas, and finding answers means we never settle. We who research are always striving and finding ways to make things run a little more smoothly, respond a little more quickly, and operate a little more efficiently.

Today, I challenge you to use your imagination and embrace “research” as one of your personal missions. I see each of you imagining new possibilities in your chosen fields and making these possibilities become realities.

How have you been touched by the “Service” mission?

Service is the mission that reaches beyond the borders of the land grant university. This is certainly true at WVU and the Davis College of Agriculture, Forestry, and Consumer Science. Many of us have benefited from the extension programs that have touched the lives of so many West Virginians – either as recipients of these services in our hometowns or by assisting in their delivery during our time at WVU.

I believe so strongly in the “service” mission that I have chosen to make service a significant component of my career. As a USDA employee, I serve American agriculture on a daily basis. Early in my career, I struggled with the fact that I didn’t return to West Virginia to practice after I finished veterinary school. It was actually Dr. Bob Dailey here at WVU who helped me realize that even though I may not be living and working in the State of West Virginia, I continue to serve West Virginians and, I hope, improve their quality of life by working for the Federal government.

Some of you may roll your eyes at this statement, but it’s one that I truly believe in. One of the most satisfying aspects of my job with the Government is having a clear and distinct mission—to protect American agriculture. I am a veterinarian and epidemiologist by training and my job is to control and eradicate animal diseases on behalf of the American people. It is my privilege and honor to serve you, my fellow Mountaineers, and your families. Our Government is only as strong, dedicated, and effective as those who serve in its workforce, and I can only hope that some of you here today will join me as Federal employees.

Don’t misunderstand–I’m not implying that everyone should work for the State or Federal government. However, today, I am challenging you to adopt a “service” mentality. Seek out opportunities to give back to your family, your community, your world. Find ways to apply what you’ve learned in here to the world out there. We need people like you. We need your fresh ideas, your new ways of looking at things, your novel perspective. We need you serving the greater good because with your contributions, we—all of us—can only get better.

I congratulate you for your achievements and your graduation from the Davis College of Agriculture, Forestry, and Consumer Science at West Virginia University. More importantly, I encourage you to adopt the land grant university missions of teaching, research, and service, as you take the next steps in your journey. Best wishes for continued success.