Skidmore College - Scope Magazine Fall 2018

10 SCOPE FALL 2018 Y E A R I N R E V I E W 2 0 1 8 Erin Covey photos Chris Massa C O M M E N C E M E N T & R E U N I O N COMMENCEMENT 2018 Skidmore graduated 672 seniors in May, sending them off with plenty of advice and good wishes. Class president Rachel Thomeer ’18 compared new grads to turtle hatchlings: “You can’t ever save them all … but you can help the one in front of you with a gentle toss into the shallow waves of safety.” Honorary degree recipient Alison Bechdel—author, cartoonist, MacArthur fellow and Tony Award winner whose best- selling memoir Fun Home was adapted for Broadway—said, “Because the job of creating positive change in the world is such hard work, it will go a lot better if you really enjoy what you’re doing.” Fellow honoree Robert S.D. Higgins—surgeon-in-chief at Johns Hopkins and a global expert in heart and lung transplantation—reflected on the gains to be found in loss, urging grads to “never let the challenges you face in life defeat your spirit.” For all the speeches, student videos and more, search “Skidmore Commencement 2018.”