Headmaster Nathaniel E. Conard's Convocation
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HEADMASTER NATHANIEL E. CONARD’S CONVOCATION SPEECH SEPTEMBER 7, 2012 I want to tell you three stories from this summer. Parts of has never had a positive drug test. This summer, the them, I’m sure, will sound familiar. The stories are about US Anti-Doping Agency, USADA, officially charged star athletes, the Presidential campaign, and Harvard that Armstrong had used performance-enhancing drugs. University. On August 23, Armstrong, who until then had always vigorously fought such allegations, announced that he The first is a story that has been all too familiar over the would not fight the USADA charges. All of his cycling years. The topic of the story—and it is a story with many, results dating back to 1998, including his seven Tour de many chapters, only three of which I will share with you France wins, will most likely be declared invalid. today—is the use of performance enhancing drugs in sports. Chapter three is the Olympic chapter. How many of you watched at least some of the events? There Chapter one is about Melky Cabrera. As many of you were so many amazing performances. The women’s know, the protagonist of this chapter is a major league 4 X 100 relay… Gabby Douglas in the individual all- baseball player, a former Yankee, and currently an around in gymnastics… Michael Phelps’ record-setting outfielder for the San Francisco Giants. He was having a performance… The women’s soccer team’s gold medal. career-best season this year. He made his first appearance I’m sure each of you has your own list of memorable in the All-Star Game where he was named the Most moments. Valuable Player, and as of August 15 he was leading the major leagues in hits, with 159, and was second in But did you notice how often a victory led to some the National League in batting average at .346. Also discussion of drugs? Every record that was set had an on August 15, Major League Baseball announced that asterisk lurking in the minds of the media commentators Cabrera was suspended for 50 games for testing positive and sometimes making it into their remarks. There were for testosterone. Although Cabrera (or his associates) something like 6,000 drug tests of the approximately did make an effort to avoid culpability—which is another 10,000 athletes at the London Games, and to date six story for another time—in the end he admitted his guilt competitors—a mere one tenth of one percent of those and did not challenge his suspension. Ironically, he may tested—have been disqualified for using performance still win the batting crown. enhancing drugs. Yet Dick Pound, the former head of the World Anti-Doping Agency, quoted on the Sports The second chapter is about Lance Armstrong. Illustrated website, estimated that over 10 percent of Armstrong is universally known for being a survivor of Olympic athletes use such drugs. testicular cancer who went on to win a record seven consecutive victories in the Tour de France, the premier The second story I have for you today comes from the bike race in the world, and for his charitable work on political arena and the presidential campaigns. Those of behalf of cancer research, a cause for which he has raised us who spent our summers in New Jersey—which is not a great deal of money and a great deal of awareness. If considered a swing state—or who, like me, don’t watch you haven’t worn one of his foundation’s yellow plastic much television, have been somewhat insulated from LIVESTRONG wristbands, I’m sure you’ve seen them. the barrage of presidential campaign TV advertising. However, we haven’t been insulated from the discussion Allegations that Armstrong engaged in doping during of those ads or their content and tenor, especially in this his cycling career have been circulating for years, but he season of political party conventions. One thing that has become increasingly pervasive on both sides of the I realize that there were lots of very inspiring stories in the campaign is a growing disregard for the truth. Although news this summer as well, and I feel a little guilty about the fact-checking industry has reportedly grown choosing to focus on these particularly disheartening exponentially over the past ten years, there has been, ones. I chose to tell you these stories NOT because I unfortunately, no corresponding increase in the veracity think the future is bleak, NOR because I am a cynic. of campaign rhetoric. In fact, the climax of this story is a statement made by a staffer on one of the presidential In fact, I chose these stories for you because I am an campaigns. He said, “We’re not going to let our campaign optimist. And I am an optimist because of my faith in be dictated by fact-checkers.” you. My final story broke a little over a week ago and comes This week we began a new school year, and just this from the halls of Harvard University. It turns out that morning you read, discussed, and recommitted to our last spring, according to the Harvard newspaper the Honor Code. As most if not all of you know, Pingry’s Crimson, nearly half of the 279 Harvard undergraduates Honor Code was first established, by the students, in enrolled in the course Government 1310 allegedly 1926. For many years the students voted on it at the plagiarized answers or inappropriately collaborated on start of each school year. A few minutes ago, when each the take-home final exam. Ironically, the course is titled advisory presented its signed Honor Code statement “Introduction to Congress.” Harvard is investigating the to Caroline and David, you committed, as students to allegations. One student was described in the New York students, to uphold the Honor Code. In that moment, Times last Saturday as saying that he had “discussed test you became part of an eighty-six year tradition at Pingry. questions with other students, which he acknowledged was prohibited, but he maintained that the practice was As you can see, the Honor Code is not something that widespread and accepted.” we take lightly. These three stories have several things in common, Throughout this year—and, indeed, throughout and I want to draw your attention to three of those your lives—you will find yourselves with countless commonalities. opportunities to make choices. You will encounter such opportunities in the classroom, on the playing fields, First, and I know this is belaboring the obvious but on stage and in the studios. You will encounter them it is important to be very, very clear on this point: all when you are struggling to complete an essay; when three stories involve cheating, or lying, or both solely for you are taking a test; or when you are with friends on personal advantage. the weekend. You may encounter them when you are competing in the Olympics; running for office; or Second, all three stories involve elite institutions or attending a highly selective university. people at the top of their professions. We are talking about top professional and amateur athletes. We are Sometimes, perhaps even most of the time, the choices talking about candidates for the highest office in this will be easy. At other times, the choices that you face or country and arguably the most powerful position in the the circumstances in which you face them will be more world. And we are talking about students at one of the challenging. most highly selective institutions of higher learning on Earth. These are not people who are laboring in obscurity When you encounter choices that test your resolve and just happened to be caught in the act of wrongdoing to do the right thing, I want you to think about the by a passing spotlight. They are—or should be—role Honor Code. And I want you to think about each other. models for all of us. Because, in pledging to each other to uphold the spirit and the letter of the Honor Code, you have also linked Third, in every case, if the principal players involved yourselves together in a lifelong network of support. John haven’t done so (and many have) someone else has Donne, the English poet, wrote some 400 years ago, “No offered as an excuse some version of “Everyone else is man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of doing it, so why shouldn’t I?” Or even worse, “Everyone the continent….” else is doing it, so I had no choice.” The stories I shared with you today are all about people who were tested by choices. I believe that they failed those tests—they made poor choices, and a little bit of the continent eroded each time. As you begin this new year, you have pledged to conduct [yourselves] in a trustworthy manner that will further the best interests of the school, [your] class, and any teams or clubs to which [you] belong. You have pledged to act as responsible members of the community, working for the common good rather than solely for personal advantage. You have pledged to honor the rights of others, conducting [yourselves] at all times in a moral and decent manner while at Pingry and throughout [your] lives as citizens of and contributors to the larger community of the world These are significant responsibilities, but in committing to them you actually make your lives easier… because you know how to make—and how to help each other make—the right choices.