I was invited to attend the graduation ceremonies of another college in the 
area and witnessed an interesting contrast to the UTC situation.

There were students who clearly had more visitors than others. It was easy 
to tell who was better known and more popular by the whoops and hollers and 
occasional whistle. But worthy of note was the awarding of a Bachelor of 
Science degree to a man in his formal blues military uniform. When his name 
was called, the announcer stated:

“John Doe was shot during military operations in Afghanistan…. He was 
awarded the bronze star, Purple Heart (and the list went on)... While 
completing his Bachelor of Science studies, he has endured eight operations 
to recover from his military injuries. His degree is awarded Summa cum laude."

It was the only announcement of its kind, ie: no “Jane’s future plans 
include” type comments. The entire crowd was on it’s feet and the announcer 
held the process at a halt until the applause died down and the crowd sat 
down on its own. For all it’s worth, there were a large number of people in 
tears before the crowd calmed.

This lead to a passing thought:
Quiet is infectious. If our announcer just held the process long enough to 
achieve a moment of calm, in time, one would think, the second or third 
time it was stopped, the crowd just possibly might get the idea. Yes, this 
would add markedly to the length of time to completion, but please 
remember, I did see a moment that clearly states: we NEED time for celebration.

Jim Bowman; Manager, Student Technology
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
Mail Code: 1611
My Office: 423-425-4517         Fax: 423-425-1754
Email: [log in to unmask]
http://www.utc.edu/StudentMicroLabs
We are in Siskin room 106. See map from the link above.