Illinois Institute of Technology 2015 Commencement Opening Ceremony The Sixteenth of May Two Thousand and Fifteen Ten in the morning Ed Glancy Field 31st Street and Michigan Avenue Chicago, Illinois elcome to IIT’s 146th Commencement Exercise. The university community extends cordial greetings to the families and friends who are gathered W here to celebrate the culmination of years of formal study. For 2,591 students, today’s ceremony officially recognizes their academic accomplishments during the 2014–15 academic year and inaugurates a new era in their lives. With a broad foundation of both intellectual capability and experiential learning that characterizes an IIT education, these graduates also take with them a sound understanding of contemporary society and its values as they join thousands of other IIT alumni. About Illinois Institute of Technology In 1890, when advanced education was often reserved for society’s elite, Chicago minister Frank Wakely Gunsaulus delivered what came to be known as the “Million Dollar Sermon” near the site Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) now occupies. Gunsaulus said that with a million dollars he would build a school where students of all backgrounds could prepare for meaningful roles in a changing industrial society. Philip Danforth Armour, a Chicago meatpacking industrialist and grain merchant, heard the sermon and came to share the minister’s vision, agreeing to finance the endeavor with the stipulation that Gunsaulus become the first president of Armour Institute. When Armour Institute opened in 1893, it offered professional courses in engineering, chemistry, architecture, and library science. IIT was created in 1940 by the merger of Armour Institute with Lewis Institute (est. 1895), a West Side college that offered liberal arts as well as science and engineering courses. The Institute of Design, 1 founded in 1937, merged with IIT in 1949. In 1969, IIT became one of the few technology-based universities with a law school when Chicago-Kent College of Law, founded in 1887, became a part of the university. Stuart School of Business was added in 1969 with a gift from the estate of Lewis Institute alumnus and Chicago financier Harold Leonard Stuart. Midwest College of Engineering, founded in 1967, joined the university in 1986, forming the nucleus for IIT’s west suburban campus. Today, Illinois Institute of Technology is a private, Ph.D.-granting university with programs in engineering, science, architecture, law, human sciences, design, business, and applied technology. More than 10,300 graduate and undergraduate students study here, coming from 48 states and from 97 countries. Scientists and engineers from IIT have made some of the century’s most important technological advances; IIT architects have shaped the skylines of cities worldwide; and Chicago-Kent College of Law alumni are impacting the legal system. About Illinois Institute of Technology, continued Three miles south of the Chicago Loop, IIT’s Main Campus was designed by renowned architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe in 1940, and IIT’s 19 Mies buildings are the highest concentration in the world. The American Institute of Architects designated Main Campus as one of the 200 most important works of architecture in the country, and Mies’ S. R. Crown Hall, which houses the College of Architecture, was granted National Historic Landmark status in 2001. Continuing IIT’s tradition of cutting-edge design, the university added two new buildings in 2003—The McCormick Tribune Campus Center, designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Rem Koolhaas, and State Street Village Residence Hall, designed by Helmut Jahn, named one of the Ten Most Influential Living American Architects by the American Institute of Architects. IIT has four additional campuses. The Downtown Campus is home to Chicago-Kent College of Law and Stuart School of Business. 2 The Institute of Design is located in Chicago’s River North area. The Daniel F. and Ada L. Rice Campus in Wheaton, Ill., offers graduate and undergraduate courses and houses the School of Applied Technology. The Moffett Campus, in Bedford Park, Ill., is the home of the Institute for Food Safety and Health. IIT also has state- of-the-art distance learning programs. Academic Regalia Much of the American academic ceremonial apparel is derived from that worn at British universities, particularly Oxford University. When Oxford was granted a charter in 1241, its members wore clerical garb because of the close connection between the university and the church. Academic apparel for colleges and universities in America was first introduced at Williams College in 1887. The Intercollegiate Commission drafted the first uniform code in 1895. The bachelor’s gown is untrimmed, with long pointed sleeves, and is worn closed. The master’s gown has long, crescent-shaped sleeves and may be worn open or closed. The doctor’s gown has velvet facing down the front and three velvet bars on the bell-shaped sleeves. The velvet is either black or the color of the major field of study. For years, most gowns were black, but today most American institutions have followed the British custom of using red or college colors. The hood is the most important and distinctive feature of the 3 American system. It was originally intended as a head cover and shoulder cape. The color of the trim indicates the degree field; for example, purple is law, orange is engineering, lavender is architecture. The length of the hood and the width of the trim indicate the degree earned, the doctor’s hood being the longest and having the widest trim. The color or colors of the hood lining indicate the degree- granting institution. The Illinois Institute of Technology hood lining has the school colors, a single grey chevron on a scarlet field. Commencement Speaker Christine Lagarde Managing Director, International Monetary Fund Born in Paris in 1956, Christine Lagarde completed high school in Le Havre and attended Holton Arms School in Bethesda (Maryland, USA). She then graduated from law school at University Paris X, and obtained a Master’s degree from the Political Science Institute in Aix en Provence. After being admitted as a lawyer to the Paris Bar, Christine Lagarde joined the international law firm of Baker & McKenzie as an associate, specializing in Labor, Anti-trust, and Mergers & Acquisitions. A member of the Executive Committee of the Firm in 1995, Christine Lagarde became the Chairman of the Global Executive Committee of Baker & McKenzie in 1999, and subsequently Chairman of the Global Strategic Committee in 2004. 4 Christine Lagarde joined the French government in June 2005 as Minister for Foreign Trade. After a brief stint as Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries, in June 2007 she became the first woman to hold the post of Finance and Economy Minister of a G-7 country. From July to December 2008, she also chaired the ECOFIN Council, which brings together Economics and Finance Ministers of the European Union. As a member of the G-20, Christine Lagarde was involved in the Group’s management of the financial crisis, helping to foster international policies related to financial supervision and regulation and to strengthen global economic governance. As Chairman of the G-20 when France took over its presidency for the year 2011, she launched a wide-ranging work agenda on the reform of the international monetary system. In July 2011, Christine Lagarde became the eleventh Managing Director of the IMF, and the first woman to hold that position. Christine Lagarde was named Officier in the Légion d’honneur in April 2012. A former member of the French national team for synchronized swimming, Christine Lagarde is the mother of two sons. Student Speaker Cameron Ketchmark Electrical Engineering Cameron Ketchmark says his desire to immerse himself in city life was just one of the reasons he chose to attend IIT. “I wanted to experience college on an urban campus with a dedication to academics and career opportunities,” he says. “I also wanted to study on a campus that focuses on sustainability. And Mies? Mies van der Rohe? Mies van der Rohe!” The Brookfield, Illinois, native says that although Mies architecture was a draw—Ketchmark entered IIT as an architecture major—he found a better fit with electrical engineering. “I had initially believed that I would be a wonderful artist and designer. Fortunately, I was wrong! After one semester of poorly cut wood models, I made the switch to electrical engineering. It clicked instantly!” he says. The move paid off academically: Ketchmark was named to 5 the Dean’s List and placed second in the fall 2014 Armour R&D Expo, working with Assistant Professor Joohee Kim on the project Improving Feature Descriptors for Pedestrian Detection. During the most challenging times of study, he says his family’s support of his engineering path and the kind words of professors inspired him to excel. “A professor or advisor who believes in you and encourages you to succeed beyond the classroom will set fire to your motivation and forever influence you,” he says. “Professor Geoffrey Williamson dealt with my confusion and constant interest swapping for three years. He did so with enthusiasm, often spending far beyond the allotted 15-minute intervals. One particular instance that resonated with me: Dr. Williamson sent me off on my last day of advising, saying, ‘Now go out and do great things!’” In addition to excelling in his coursework, Ketchmark participated in various student groups and was a champion of IIT student spirit. He served on the Student Government Association and devised the fictitious “IIT Potato” mascot and social media campaign in an effort to build student community on campus. He helped to promote IIT’s Mobile App Development (MAD) club, using social media to build student attendance at coding events. He also participated in the IIT Pumpkin Launch.