(gentle music)
- [Presenter] This
year, Columbia's campus
is not just Manhattan-bound.
It's located in
Brooklyn, New York,
in Wagoner, Oklahoma,
in Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
This year, College Walk
starts at 116th and Amsterdam
and expands across the
country and around the world
to every place our
students call home.
A new year awaits us,
one where we will
connect while separate,
learn in virtual space,
and discover what makes
Columbia Columbia,
which is in great part
our ideas and our people.
Although our classrooms
will lie dormant this year,
your minds will be cultivated
in a digital network
where faculty will
invite your voice,
your opinions, and your ideas.
The engraved names
along Butler Library
represent a part of our history
and you represent our future.
For now, your
favorite study spaces
may be a shady spot
in your backyard,
but, in time, you'll
accumulate your own stories
of late night study
breaks within these walls
and you'll mark treasured
reading nooks as your own
as they sustain you
through the intellectual
journey that starts today.
The Columbia sundial was
a gift from college alumni
more than a century ago.
It's a gathering place
that awaits your arrival.
Here, you'll meet friends
and you'll view countless
perfect sunsets.
All who see Alma
Mater are reminded
of the knowledge
and light we seek
when we join
Columbia as scholars,
explorers,
scientists, creators,
and, yes, dreamers
who will find the owl of wisdom
hidden within the
folds of her gown
but, also, the wisdom
within the works of
literature you'll read
or in the scientific
theories you'll analyze.
Therein lies the task ahead.
The search for knowledge
both within yourself
and within the ideas you'll
confront here at Columbia.
Take in the sights
of your new home,
while not yet
physically within reach,
but, intellectually,
always at your fingertips,
as we approach
the official start
of your lifelong
Columbia journey,
beginning now with Convocation.
Welcome Columbia
Lion. Let's roar.
Starting in three, two, one.
(bright music)
(bright music)
- Welcome.
- Bienvenue.
- Welcome.
- Welcome.
- Welcome.
- Welcome.
- Welcome.
- Welcome.
- Welcome to Columbia.
- Welcome, Class of 2024.
- Welcome.
- Welcome to Columbia.
- Welcome to Columbia.
- Welcome to Columbia.
- [All] Welcome to Columbia.
- It's my distinct pleasure
to welcome you to
the Columbia family
and to let you know
that all of us are here
to support you
during your journey.
- I just wanted to welcome
you to the Columbia community.
- I am so excited
to welcome you here.
- We are thrilled
to have you here.
- We can't wait to support you.
- Please know that we'll be
with you every step of the way.
- Throughout your
academic journey.
- From some of us here at
Columbia Residential Life.
- We are so excited
to welcome you.
- To our Columbia community.
- Hi, welcome to
Columbia University.
- Welcome to Columbia.
We are very excited
to have you.
- We're very excited to
welcome you to Columbia.
- Welcome to Columbia.
- I'm here with two important
members of my family,
Dempsey and Rooney,
who can't wait to
welcome you too.
- On behalf of the entire
Columbia alumni
community, welcome.
We are so happy
to have you here.
- We are so excited
you to welcome you
and wish you all the best.
- As you start your
journey as Columbia Lions.
- Sending you well wishes
for the school year.
- You're going to
have a great time
getting to know
your classmates,
exploring new academic
and research subjects,
and inventing the
next solutions to
the world's problem.
- The best teacher you'll
ever have is experience.
Therefore, experience Columbia,
experience your classmates.
- You probably won't take
biology until your second year,
but we look forward to seeing
every last one of you then.
- Well wishes to the
start of the new year.
- Welcome to Columbia,
Class of 2024.
- Can't wait to meet
you. Roar, Lions, roar.
- Go Lions!
- Best of luck to all of you.
(all cheering)
- Good evening and thank you
for joining us here today.
My name is Jessica Marinaccio
and as your dean of
undergraduate admissions
and financial aid
and as the person who signed
all of the admission letters
that you worked so
very, very hard to earn,
I want to officially welcome
you to the Columbia community.
Joining me in
this welcome today
are President Bollinger,
Dean Valentini,
Dean Boyce, Dean Kromm,
and New Student Orientation
Student Representative
Wesley Schmidt.
Also joining us in spirit
are distinguished alumni,
esteemed faculty,
dedicated staff,
and committed and enthusiastic
student volunteers,
all united with the
purpose of welcoming you
on this special day for our
entire university community.
Special because
convocation is a ceremony
where aspiring
Columbians finally
become truly Columbians.
Despite the
distances between us,
you are at last here in
the Columbia community.
Welcome, Class of 2024
and all our new and
incoming students.
Today, your first
official day at Columbia,
certainly does not look
how any of us had imagined.
And yet, it is still
the culmination
of years of effort,
accomplishment, and dedication.
This is a day when new hopes
and dreams begin to take shape,
because education
is about question
and challenge and
promise and change
leading to newfound
ideas, goals, and dreams
that you may not yet,
even now, know exist.
Today you stand on the
cusp of an experience
that will change your life.
Consider the loved ones who
are celebrating with you,
whether they are in
the room with you now
or wishing you well from afar.
What they all share in common
is the desire to support
the incredible journey
on which you are embarking.
And thus, family and friends,
this is a big day for you too.
Challenging maybe, yes,
but one which I hope you
will embrace with great joy
and we proudly and joyfully
welcome you also to
the Columbia family.
You are here with
us at convocation
because in all the
tapestry of who you are,
you are Columbia.
Your Columbia
story begins today,
and as someone who knew you a
little bit at the beginning,
I will watch how
that story unfolds
with great anticipation
and admiration.
Welcome again to
the Class of 2024
and to all our new
and incoming students.
I would now like to
introduce Wesley Schmidt,
student representative
from the New Student
Orientation Program.
Wesley is a junior in Columbia
College studying sociology.
He grew up in Walton, Kentucky,
a small town just outside
of Cincinnati, Ohio.
He is heavily involved
in student theater
and performs with
multiple groups,
including the Varsity Show
and the Columbia
Musical Theatre Society,
the latter of which he
serves as vice president.
He is a submissions editor
for "The Federalist,"
Columbia's humor newspaper,
and an Under-Secretary-General
of Committees
for Columbia's high school
Model UN Conference.
Welcome, Wesley.
- Thank you, Dean Marinaccio.
Congratulations!
And welcome to the New
Student Orientation Program.
Your Columbia journey
is about to begin.
This'll be a week
unlike any other,
so take advantage
of all the events
that have been
planned just for you.
I cannot overstate this.
We are so excited that you'll
be joining our community.
I'm sure you're all feeling a
mixture of emotions right now.
Fear, uncertainty,
nervousness, excitement.
I want you to know
that we too are feeling
those same emotions.
No one knows exactly
what this school year
is going to look like,
but as Columbians, we
will stick together
and weather through,
coming out stronger
because of it.
Your theme for this year's
NSOP is Explore New Horizons.
We created this theme to
encourage you to try new things
and forge opportunities
for yourselves,
thus expanding your
worldview in the process.
We had no idea how the
school year would look
but with a fully
virtual semester,
I find this theme to
be even more relevant.
All of us, from
first-years to seniors,
will be exploring a new horizon
wildly different
from our expectations
that forces us to adapt
and be adventurous.
It may seem overwhelming
at the moment
but college is a journey
and it's one that you should
be excited to take on.
Now, without the
campus experience,
you may wonder how you'll
navigate the change
that comes with
moving to college.
I felt the exact same way
when we were sent
home in the spring.
But I promise you
that with effort,
this fall can be the start
of a whole new chapter.
Campus life may be on hiatus
but there are hundreds
of student groups,
identity groups, and
academic departments
that cannot wait
to welcome you.
Clubs are still meeting,
theater groups are still
putting on performances,
and campus student-run
publications
are still putting out content.
Now, college may
be about learning
independence and
self-governance
but you aren't meant to go
through it completely alone.
We need each other
more than ever.
So find people you
enjoy connecting with.
They may be from
your NSOP group,
a student in one
of your classes,
a leader in a club that
you're interested in,
or someone you just
DM on social media.
Your classmates come
from all over the world.
No matter where you live,
there are Columbia students
closer than you think.
A junior reached out
to me over the summer
to see if I wanted to meetup
and have a socially
distanced hangout
with some fellow
students from Cincinnati.
This is someone I
had never met before
and responding to her
message opened me up
to an entire community of
Columbians in my hometown.
See, while Columbia
might be in New York,
the city is just a bonus
to the amazing people
and experiences
that this university
will open up to you.
Columbia is far more than NYC.
It's the lifelong
friends you make
after joining a study group
for a difficult class.
It's the eye-opening
internship that you get
because of your relationship
with a professor.
It's the amazing work that
you produce with your peers
after joining a
student organization.
It's the discovery
of a new passion
all because of a class
you took for fun.
That's the real
Columbia experience
and no pandemic could
ever take that away.
So on behalf of the entire
undergraduate community,
I am so excited to welcome
you to our university.
So welcome, Class of 2024,
to Columbia University.
- Good evening and
morning and afternoon,
and welcome to you, our newest
Columbia College students.
Welcome also to your devoted,
steadfast and loving families.
The word convocation
derived from the Latin verb,
convocari, refers to the
calling together of people
for a large formal assembly,
usually ecclesiastical
or academic.
Formal assembly conveys that
the group being called together
is actually
physically together.
And at all our prior
convocations people
were physically together
at an appointed time,
seated in an orderly fashion
in carefully aligned
rows of seats
under a perfectly erected tent
on South Lawn or Low Plaza.
I need not say the obvious
that this is not
the case this year.
I do need to say that
I am disappointed,
but I also need to add
that I am no less excited
to be welcoming you
today than I have been
in the eight previous
times I have done so
as Dean of Columbia College.
I am disappointed
because unlike
convocations of the past,
I cannot look out to see every
parent, every family member.
I cannot observe the
eager anticipation
of you new students.
I cannot see the pride
of your families,
but I know that
anticipation and that pride
are no less present today than
in convocations of the past.
Enveloping that excitement,
anticipation and pride
is the sadness of the
present moment in our world.
The grief at loss of
life and opportunity
and the unease from
the uncertainty
of what future
moments will bring.
The pervasive unpredictability
in our world, global,
national, institutional, and
personal, is challenging.
Challenging for all
of us at Columbia
and challenging for each of
you as you enter Columbia.
I am certain we can
manage those challenges
and equally certain
that challenges
will reveal opportunities.
I am encouraging you to
see the opportunities
that inevitably
present themselves
during times of uncertainty.
Some of those
opportunities will be new
while others will just have
become more evident to us
in our change to circumstances.
There is a way of
viewing the world,
a way of engaging
with the world,
that will help you recognize
those opportunities.
It is called beginner's mind.
Beginner's mind is a
state of being described
in Zen Buddhism as an attitude
of openness, eagerness,
and lack of preconceptions.
In the wonderful little book,
"Zen Mind, Beginner's
Mind," by Shunyru Suzuki,
this attitude is explained
by a simple sentence that you
will hear me say to you many
times over your years here.
In the beginner's mind,
there are many possibilities,
in the expert's
mind, there are few.
I emphasize the importance
of this way of thinking
with every incoming
class upon their arrival.
But it is particularly
important this year.
So much is different this year.
Your classmates are spread
throughout the world.
Your classrooms will
be checkerboards
of individual student
images on the display
of an electronic device.
You'll engage in a community
that lives in virtual space
rather than on the Terra
Firma of College Walk
and within the historic
rooms of Hamilton Hall.
Yet with the loss of
those traditional forms,
there must be and
will be possibilities.
Having beginner's mind is key
to seeing those possibilities.
The Columbia College
experience is unique
to each of you individually.
So we have developed
a guidebook for it
that all of you can use,
but each of you will use
in a specific individual way.
We call it "My Columbia
College Journey."
Each of you understands that
earning academic credits,
completing major requirements,
exploring internships,
summer jobs, or
extracurriculars are
things that are good.
They are a record of
what you have done,
but they are not the story
of who you are or how to be.
The point of this
college experience,
to which every alum of
this college can testify,
is to discover how to
flourish as a human being.
To flourish no matter
how unpredictable
your individual life
or our collective
lives are at times.
"My Columbia College
Journey," was created
to guide you to achieve that.
This means that in the college,
you will not only
acquire knowledge,
but that you will also expand
your understanding of others
and your effectiveness
in engaging with them.
You will acquire
communication tools,
refine your skills as both
a leader and a team member,
learn to innovate and adapt
and develop strategies
for maintaining
wellness and resilience.
That is what we want for you.
Success as a human
being, as a neighbor,
as a parent, an
employee, a citizen.
The first step in that
journey is your immersion
in the core curriculum,
the shared experience
and heritage of every
Columbia college student,
in which you discover how
people throughout the ages
have conceived that success,
how they have recognized
that flourishing.
Each of your individual
Columbia college journeys
is decorated with a very
special color: a light blue.
Not just any light blue,
a very particular one.
In the Pantone matching system,
that is the universal
reference for colors,
that light blue is Pantone 292.
You will hear me
refer to Pantone 292,
almost as often as I
do beginner's mind.
It is the blue of
Columbia College
and it visually
connects all of us.
And it will be yours for
the rest of your lives.
For some of you, it has
already been part of your life.
Certainly if you are fans
of the Kansas City Royals,
Tennessee Titans, Tampa Bay
Rays, or Manchester City FC,
because Pantone 292 is a
color in their uniforms.
And certainly it has
been part of life
for those of you
new students coming
from one of the
many high schools
that have Pantone 292
as one of their colors.
This year, dispersed as
we are all over the globe,
let's all keep something
Pantone 292 with each of us
as a visible symbol
of our connectedness,
no matter the physical
distance between us.
A symbol of the bond we share,
a symbol of our commitment
to the flourishing of every
one of us in the coming year.
Thank you, and once again,
welcome to Columbia College.
- Hello and welcome.
Welcome to Columbia University,
to Columbia Engineering.
A special welcome to
our class of 2024,
our entering juniors
joining our 3-2 program,
and our entering
students transferring
to Columbia Engineering.
Every new academic year brings
with it a great promise,
new beginnings,
new friendships,
new perspectives
and new adventures.
This year, we also begin
with a deep sense of purpose
and commitment to
confront the challenges
of this pandemic together,
to build an amazing year
together, one like no other.
To connect and engage together
in new and different ways,
and to prepare you together,
to learn, to discover,
to dream, to grow, to
explore, to create, to thrive,
to engage and to have impact.
You are about to
embark on a journey,
one that will start you
on a path of knowledge,
discovery, creativity,
and action.
One which will shape your
perspectives and your goals.
And you will not
be doing it alone.
You are joined by an
amazing set of peers
from across the country
and around the globe.
You will inspire each
other and you will support
and encourage each
other to expand your
minds, your talents,
your interests, and your
vision of the world.
While you're beginning
your time together
at Columbia remotely, you
share a sense of connectedness
with one another
that is deepened
by the shared
challenges of today.
You will also learn
from and be inspired
by an incredible faculty,
scholars who are eager
to be part of your
intellectual journey.
As the Dean of Engineering,
I'd like to speak especially
to those students
in engineering and
applied science.
Today, you join a community
with a rich history.
From the start, Columbia
Engineering has been engaged
with the challenges
of the world.
Our faculty and alumni
were instrumental
in advancing the
technology that helped
to create the modern
city of today.
They implemented better
sanitation methods
and cleaner water.
They built early
transportation systems
from railways in China
to the Panama Canal,
to the New York City subway.
They pioneered long
distance telephones
and the use of
x-ray in medicine,
the invention of FM radio which
underpins electronics today,
the fermentation process to
mass produce antibiotics,
which has saved
countless lives,
and a punch tabulating
system that was a forerunner
to electronic computers
and data science.
Those graduates were at the
forefront of their fields,
and that tradition to bring
a positive engineering impact
on lives continues today.
Engineering has become a
central foundation to education
in the 21st century.
At Columbia, this foundation
of technical depth
is further amplified
by our commitment
to the core curriculum.
This is a powerful mix in
our rapidly changing world,
and it provides the
foundation for your future.
Now more than ever, the
world needs your talents,
your new ways of looking
at the challenges
facing humanity today, and
these challenges are many.
Tackling the current
pandemic from diagnostics
to therapeutics to vaccines,
to reinventing our
whole new normal.
Advancing medicine and
human health for all,
joining our tissue
engineering efforts
or accelerating drug discovery.
Confronting our climate future
from clean energy and water
to decarbonizing manufacturing
and transportation.
Harnessing the enormous
amounts of information and data
in our world for
the purpose of good,
keeping it secure and private,
joining our blockchain
and data transparency
efforts, or participating
in our AI for All initiative
to usher in ethical
and equitable AI.
Here at Columbia, you will
have so many opportunities
to try new things, to
share your creativity,
to challenge yourself,
to begin new endeavors
and to play a role
in this exciting era
of discovery and impact.
I am confident that you
will find here, the faculty,
the peers, friends,
mentors, the courses
and activities to help
you on this journey.
We can't wait to see what
amazing things you will do
during your time at
Columbia and beyond.
Congratulations and welcome.
Thank you.
- I am sending you this welcome
in a moment of great poignancy.
The formal convocation is one
of the great academic
ceremonies of the year,
matched only by commencement.
These two great moments
in the university calendar
mark the entrance of our newest
members and the departure
of those students who have
completed a critical stage
in their education with us.
Each is filled
with high emotions,
the sense of accomplishment,
of anticipation,
and of gratitude to those,
most notably, the parents,
who have seen them through
to this point in life.
You are at the beginning.
And in all the years I
have been fortunate enough
to be in this role and to
stand with you at the outset,
never did I imagine
that I would have to
do this virtually.
But I can assure you of this,
that the feelings of pride
and warmth for you, and the
determination to provide you
with the best educational
experience in the world
in the years ahead are
just as strong as ever,
and perhaps even stronger
because we have been deprived
for the moment of that
personal interaction
we value so deeply.
Now I realize that the
disruption you must be feeling
in your lives at this
time must be intense.
There is no denying the fact
that we're all struggling
with a crisis of
historic proportions,
and that young people
like you are being
especially affected.
The idea that your hopes and
dreams have been modified,
and at least partially put on
hold, is hard to deal with.
Heartbreaking, really.
But I want to assure
you of several things.
The first is that every
single faculty member
and staff of the
university is completely
and totally dedicated
to helping you and us
get through this period.
We do not know how
long this will last,
but I am optimistic that
there will come a point soon
when we will be
returning to normal.
Until then, we are
reshaping and redesigning
our teaching and
courses to provide you
with the extraordinary
education
that Columbia
distinctively offers.
The second observation
I want to offer now
is to remember that we will
have a long time together.
And although this is
a challenging start,
we will still have
time to make up for
what we have had to
forgo at the beginning.
I promise you this will happen.
The third and last thought
I want to convey here
is extremely important, but
quite a bit more complicated.
It really is about
how we learn,
about how we become who we are
over the course of our lives,
and about how all of that
relates to this moment in time.
Let me begin with how we learn.
As someone who has spent nearly
all of my professional life
in the Academy, I might be
expected to say something
like the following: It is
a fact of life, I believe,
that the most important
thing in the world is ideas.
Democracy is an idea.
A free market
economy is an idea.
The treatment of
disease is an idea.
Ideas, theories, about
how the world works
and about how we
should be in the world,
these are the foundations
on which we live.
There are, however, many ways
in which we form our ideas.
Pursuing an education at
Columbia University is one way,
one of the best of course.
But observing and acting in
the world is another way too.
A way which also provides
us with the opportunity
to develop ideas that
will work, in fact.
The best way to learn
usually is a combination
of these two methods,
a continual process
of interaction
and interchange between
reflection on the one hand
and action on the other hand.
Now, if this is true,
and many serious minds
have come to the
same conclusion in
one form or another,
then it can be helpful
to learning well
that we learn in a time
of momentous events.
And we are most certainly in
a time of momentous events.
There is the
pandemic of course,
an historic worldwide threat
to our health, our economies,
our social fabric,
and our ways of life.
There is also however,
simultaneously a
crisis of democracy
now confronting
the United States,
as well as the many other
nations around the world.
And within our own
democracy, there is a crisis
of a centuries-long system
of inequality and injustice
that continues to
manifest itself in
extremely harmful ways,
particularly in the
lived experience of
African Americans.
There are other crises
too, many on the
international stage.
With respect to every
one of these crises,
there is of course, a
heartening mobilization
of the best sides of
humanity to grapple with it.
And we see the quest
for better healthcare,
economic rejuvenation,
and maintenance of
the social fabric.
We see noble efforts to call
out authoritarian tendencies
and to nurture the
essential ingredients
of a system of
constitutional democracy,
which includes respect
for facts and truth,
tolerance of peoples
and viewpoints,
and observance of the
principle of the rule of law,
and restraint in the
exercise of power.
And with respect
to the pernicious
problems of inequality
and discrimination,
we see the beginnings
of the second civil
rights movement.
You are launching your career
in college while living
in this enormously significant
and consequential moment.
It will be remarked on,
studied, analyzed, reviewed,
interpreted, and
assessed for decades
and even centuries to come.
And you were part of it,
in it, affected by it,
taught by it, hurt by it,
and perhaps helped by it.
The biggest help, I predict,
will be with your education.
This is because nearly all of
the ideas you will encounter
in your classes will
have relevant examples
in the real world.
For you and for us, these
will not be abstractions
or detached from reality,
but rather blindingly
and illuminatingly relevant.
In more subdued
or placid times,
you do not receive the same
educational experience.
I should add that
we at Columbia have
taken on the mission
of not only leading in
the discovery of ideas,
but also in the
bringing of these ideas
to the making of the world.
So in a variety of ways,
we want to provide you
with the chances to
participate in the world
as well as to study
and think about it.
You will hear, for example,
of our nine global centers
around the world
and our operation
called Columbia World Projects.
And so as hard as what we
are going through now is,
always keep in mind
that there is something
profoundly special
and even beneficial
to the core enterprise
of the Columbia education
you are receiving
by receiving it in this moment.
Still, I want to close by
saying how much I look forward
to seeing you in person,
perhaps even having you in my
course on the first amendment.
When the regular rhythms
of our academic lives
can be renewed.
For now, in this
painfully removed form,
I send my heartfelt
congratulations
on joining us at Columbia,
and in wishing you good luck
in the years ahead.
(bright music)
- Hello, new Lions.
- Welcome to the
Columbia family.
- Hey, Columbia class of 2024.
- Welcome to Columbia.
(saxophone booming)
Columbia College class of 2024.
- We'd like to welcome
you class of 2024.
- Welcome Columbia
Engineering class of 2024
from the class of 1984.
- You've made it!
We are so proud of you.
- Welcome to a great
tradition and congratulations
for being a part of it.
- You're in for the
ride of your life.
- I know you're gonna
have a great year.
- I am so, so
excited that you guys
are all joining the
Columbia Community.
- We can't wait to share
Columbia traditions with you.
- We're so excited to
welcome you this year.
- To Columbia University,
your new home.
- Welcome home class of 2024.
We're so excited to have
you here and I can't wait
for all of the experiences
you're gonna have
over the next four years.
- Get excited and get ready
to make them your own.
- I couldn't have
predicted when I first
set foot on campus,
how much my
experience at Columbia
would change both
view view the world
and how I made a difference
through the creation
of science and technology.
- You can really find
any community that
you're looking for.
And if you have an open mind
to try a lot of new things,
you're gonna find
a lot of people
that you really,
really cherish.
- Try to keep up
a good attitude.
If you need help, go out
and seek it, get help.
Give help to your
classmates when you can.
And if you do those
things and don't give up,
dreams do come true.
- Think about what your
spirit is driven by
and work towards doing
your very best at it
at Columbia and beyond.
- Read all your
humanities textbooks in
the core curriculum.
It's the secret sauce
for the coming years.
Columbia will be the best
four years of your time.
Have fun!
- Make sure that whenever
you have an opportunity,
you go in and see your faculty
during their office hours
and get to know them so
they get to know you.
I would like to welcome
the class of 2024
to the School of
Engineering in Columbia.
The COVID-19
epidemic prevents us
from welcoming you in
person, but I look forward
to seeing you at
future gatherings
when things are safe.
- We hope you have
an amazing time.
- Welcome!
- I hope the next four
years are awesome.
- Congratulations engineer's
for getting started
at the best school.
- Don't forget to grab a
slice at Koronet Pizza.
- Be sure to get a Milano.
- And definitely try the
frozen yogurt at East Cafe.
And don't forget, this
is only the beginning
of your journey, and
C students and alumni
are always there for you.
- We're here to support you,
so reach out to us alumni.
- We'll all be rooting
for you, you're not alone.
- Welcome class of
2024, seize the day
and make the most of
your time at Columbia.
- There's a big world out
there for you to conquer
and it's full of Columbians
to support you along the way.
- Roar, Lion, Roar.
- Roar, Lion, Roar.
- Roar, Lions, Roar.
- Roar, Lions, Roar.
- Roar, Lions, Roar.
- Roar, Lion, Roar,
and welcome to
Columbia class of 2024.
- I am thrilled to welcome
you to Columbia today,
personally, and on
behalf of my team
in Undergraduate Student Life.
In addition to the warm
greetings you just received
from students and alumni,
our NSOP student leaders,
resident advisors, and so
many others share my eagerness
in making this
year unforgettable,
filled with wonderful
memories and new connections,
even though today
looks quite different
from what any of us imagined.
The students and staff
across Columbia College
and Columbia Engineering
offer our utmost support
as you make connections
and begin to feel at home
within our community,
from your many locations
around the globe.
While your experiences with
this will look different
from those of any
class before you,
our commitment to
providing you with new
and memorable opportunities
remains the same.
One opportunity now
before you is finding
where you feel most
at home at Columbia.
That's been easy for me.
Columbia is literally home.
My apartment right here,
on campus in Wallach Hall.
But it's not the location
that makes Columbia home,
it's the people.
And my fellow
Columbians may as well
be members of my family.
Although we cannot meet
together in person this year
for some of our
beloved traditions,
that time will come.
What you won't need to wait for
are the friendships you will
forge and the experiences
with the many student
organizations, faiths, teams,
and service groups at Columbia.
I hope as you become involved
and make connections,
you experience your fellow
Columbians as family too.
You've already
had an opportunity
through the Countdown
to Columbia virtual
program series,
to meet many people who are
here to support your success,
both in and out
of the classroom.
During NSOP, in
addition to meeting your
orientation leaders
and resident advisors,
you'll meet other sophomores,
juniors and seniors
during community
scripted conversations
and identity panels.
You'll also have
daily opportunities
to meet each other,
perhaps at one or
two of our open mics.
Activities day is an
event and a tradition
where you can sign up
for all the clubs and
activities that interest you,
and it will happen
virtually this September.
I encourage you to take full
advantage of all the resources
and opportunities
designed with you in mind.
As you explore new horizons
during NSOP and beyond,
I'm excited for you and
your journey with us.
Thank you again and
welcome to Columbia.
- It is now my pleasure
to introduce the portion
of our ceremony in which we
highlight our most impressive
and talented group
of new students.
Our community of
incoming students
hails from across the world.
And earlier this summer,
were asked to provide a photo
and location from which
they're joining us today.
While we unfortunately
cannot welcome you
to campus just yet, we want
to take this opportunity
to showcase and
introduce each of you
to your fellow classmates.
Stay tuned after the showcase,
as you won't want to miss our
esteemed a cappella groups
leading us with a singing
of a Columbia classic,
"Roar, Lion, Roar," the
lyrics of which can be found
in the last page of your
digital convocation book.
It is with great pride that
I invite you to sit back,
relax, and enjoy our
newest Columbia Lions.
teams of old, ♪
♪ Nowadays we can praise, ♪
l
♪ Fighting teams again, ♪
♪ Hear the lion
roar his pride, ♪
♪ While the men
of Morningside, ♪
♪ Follow the blue and
white to victory, ♪
♪ Roar, Lion, roar, ♪
♪ And wake the echoes
of the Hudson Valley, ♪
♪ Fight on to
victory evermore, ♪
♪ While the sons of
Knickerbocker rally, ♪
♪ 'Round Columbia, Columbia, ♪
♪ Shouting her name forever, ♪
♪ Roar, Lion, roar, ♪
♪ For Alma Mater, ♪
♪ Alma Mater, ♪
♪ Alma Mater, ♪
♪ Alma Mater ♪
♪ On the Hudson Shore ♪
(lion roar)
