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Well， goodness. Thank you. Let me tell you it is a pleasure and an honor to be with all of you today.
And again， let’s take a moment to thank all of those beautiful people sitting behind you all today and standing behind2 you every day， the folks who brought you into this world—the folks who showed you， with their love， that you belong here.
And of course， most of all， to the Spelman class of 2011， congratulations！ We are so， so proud of you. You didn’t just write a chapter in your own life story. You also became part of the Spelman story—a story that began 130 years ago about 10 miles down the road from where we are today.
And by now， all of you know the details： about how two white women from up North—Sophia Packard and Harriet Giles—came here to Atlanta to establish the Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary.3 They started out in a dank church basement loaned to them by a kindly preacher named Father Quarles.4 And their first class had just 11 students， many of whom were former slaves. In a time of black codes and lynching，5 this school was training African American women to be leaders in education， in the health professions.
So let’s go back again to those first 11 women in that church basement all those years ago. Their teachers started with nothing but a couple of Bibles. When it rained， it got so damp in that church that grass started growing on the floor. Often， the stove was so smoky， and the light was so poor， that students could barely see their teachers.
But still， week after week， more women showed up to enroll6. One student， a woman named Mary Ann Brooks， simply stated： “I spoke of going to school， and people laughed at me and said ‘You go to school！ You too old！ You’re so old you’ll die there.’ But I told them it was just as good a place to die in as I ever wanted， and I knew Miss Packard and Miss Giles would bury me， so I just came right along7.”
That spark， that spirit， that odds-defying tenacity has defined the alumnae of this school from its very first graduating class.8 And for six generations， that is what Spelman women have done. They have seen every defeat as a challenge.
Over the past four years， you all have been serving your community in every way possible： tutoring9 kids， bringing meals to seniors， building homes， and so much more. And in so doing， I can promise you that you won’t just enrich their lives， you’ll immeasurably enrich your own lives as well.10
And I can tell you from my own experience just how rewarding it can be. When I got my law degree， so much to the surprise of my family and friends， I left that secure， high-paying job and eventually became the Executive Director of a non-profit， working to help young people get involved in public service. I was making a lot less money and my office was a lot smaller. But I woke up every morning with a sense of purpose and possibility. I felt myself becoming inspired.
And again， let’s take a moment to thank all of those beautiful people sitting behind you all today and standing behind2 you every day， the folks who brought you into this world—the folks who showed you， with their love， that you belong here.
And of course， most of all， to the Spelman class of 2011， congratulations！ We are so， so proud of you. You didn’t just write a chapter in your own life story. You also became part of the Spelman story—a story that began 130 years ago about 10 miles down the road from where we are today.
And by now， all of you know the details： about how two white women from up North—Sophia Packard and Harriet Giles—came here to Atlanta to establish the Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary.3 They started out in a dank church basement loaned to them by a kindly preacher named Father Quarles.4 And their first class had just 11 students， many of whom were former slaves. In a time of black codes and lynching，5 this school was training African American women to be leaders in education， in the health professions.
So let’s go back again to those first 11 women in that church basement all those years ago. Their teachers started with nothing but a couple of Bibles. When it rained， it got so damp in that church that grass started growing on the floor. Often， the stove was so smoky， and the light was so poor， that students could barely see their teachers.
But still， week after week， more women showed up to enroll6. One student， a woman named Mary Ann Brooks， simply stated： “I spoke of going to school， and people laughed at me and said ‘You go to school！ You too old！ You’re so old you’ll die there.’ But I told them it was just as good a place to die in as I ever wanted， and I knew Miss Packard and Miss Giles would bury me， so I just came right along7.”
That spark， that spirit， that odds-defying tenacity has defined the alumnae of this school from its very first graduating class.8 And for six generations， that is what Spelman women have done. They have seen every defeat as a challenge.
Over the past four years， you all have been serving your community in every way possible： tutoring9 kids， bringing meals to seniors， building homes， and so much more. And in so doing， I can promise you that you won’t just enrich their lives， you’ll immeasurably enrich your own lives as well.10
And I can tell you from my own experience just how rewarding it can be. When I got my law degree， so much to the surprise of my family and friends， I left that secure， high-paying job and eventually became the Executive Director of a non-profit， working to help young people get involved in public service. I was making a lot less money and my office was a lot smaller. But I woke up every morning with a sense of purpose and possibility. I felt myself becoming inspired.