Commencement 2024, Welcome from the Board of Trustees, Steve Rodgers P'24, '25
On behalf of Millbrook's Board of Trustees, it is my distinct pleasure and privilege to welcome you all to the 93rd Millbrook graduation ceremony. Class of 2024, you made it! Congratulations. I want to start by thanking the faculty, staff, and administration of Millbrook. This day comes as a result of the love and dedication that you have for your craft. I carefully chose the word craft because there is no instruction manual for the great work that you do. It can be painful and joyful all at the same time, but your work leaves an indelible imprint on the lives of so many.
Today, we get to celebrate that accomplishment with the class of 2024. Class of 2024, can I get a round of applause for the faculty, staff, and administration of Millbrook? I also want to thank the parents of the class of 2024. The decision to send your kids to Millbrook is a calculated and well-thought-out choice, but it is still a bet. Now, as bets go, the track record is stellar. I am sure you all did your research, and Millbrook passes all the gates to be considered a safe and reliable bet. It sure beats betting on the horse at Preakness a few weeks ago or blackjack in a casino; nonetheless, we all said that we think our children will benefit from this experience and are willing to have them live and sleep somewhere else before college.
It was not an easy decision for my wife and I who had not experienced boarding school firsthand, so on behalf of the board I just want to congratulate the parents of 2024’s on hitting the most important jackpot that you ever will in your life. Parents of the class of 2024 – you nailed it. It is my opinion that your investment in your children – now adults - has outperformed any investment or any choice that you have made thus far in your lives. Class of 2024 Can I get a round of applause for the parents of Millbrook!
Class of 2024 – on to you! In a recent conversation with a 2024 graduate of Millbrook and a friend of my daughter (Sammy), this young man reflected on an interesting question – how did we all get to Millbrook? What caused our paths to cross in this amazing place? We quickly concluded that every single story of how and why was different. Yet for four years, for most, paths collided, and none of the Class of 2024 graduates will be the same ever again because of the intersection of their path with other classmates.
On multiple days each week, I get on the train to Grand Central Station. I pass through that great hall with thousands of other people. Except when I run into a friend here or there, as soon as I leave, the faces of the people I see are erased from my mind. The identities of those people, their hopes and dreams until the next day when I walk by the same people without knowing that I walked by them the day before or what had transpired in their lives in the last 24 hours.
I am not suggesting that we should all interrupt our morning commute to get to know our fellow commuters or that this would even be practical. I raise the example only to point out the similarities but, more importantly, the stark differences between that great train station and Millbrook. In both, we intersect with people who are all on different paths, but at Millbrook, the journey becomes intertwined. Community is developed, and diversity of experience and thought become the building blocks of growth, change, maturation, and love. I will not pretend that this means that things are always easy and fun. Living and breathing communities experience pain, hurt, and loss, and the Class of 2024 certainly knows about this. But my advice to the graduates is that the return on investment of leaning into your community and embracing diverse perspectives is one of the most valuable investments that you can make in your life when you leave here.
As we get older, engagement becomes more and more optional. Community service in college and life is not something that you have to show up for on Saturday morning. There is no sign-in at formal dinners and assemblies. It is truly a choice – a choice which you have all earned by the hard work that you have put in to reach this milestone and to become an adult. Although it is a choice, I want to submit to you that it is a choice that has ramifications for your own prosperity, happiness, and health.
For the next 30-50 years of your lives, you will be busy. There will be enough things that you have to do that fill up your days and then some. College academic work, first jobs, families, and children. Those responsibilities alone are more than enough to fill our time, and they are really important things that should be priorities. But in my opinion, they do not completely fill the soul. I submit that by leaning into your community and embracing diverse experiences, you will have more success and happiness in all aspects of your life – academic work, jobs, and, most importantly, family. These acts will support you and strengthen your life and the lives of others.
What are examples of this? How do we lean into our communities? How do we embrace diversity? These have been modeled here for you at Millbrook in small and large ways. The most basic example is the imperative of being known and needed. One of the most innocent but important misconceptions about inclusion is that the act of inclusivity means that we do not see differences. It makes sense – right? You want people to think that you do not see their differences or treat them differently because of those unique aspects. I get that sentiment. But to be known and needed means that you are seen and appreciated. Leaning into your community here at Millbrook for the last four years has made someone who felt "other" feel known and needed, but I submit to you that the act of seeing others also fills up your own cup of needs. Hang on to this – embrace it – lean into your future communities. Class of 2024 – embrace diversity!
The importance of diversity has long been discussed through a social justice lens. The imperative has been about doing the right thing. Immerse yourself in diverse communities because it is morally right. You can each develop your own view about this morality. For me, that happens to resonate, but it might not resonate with others. I think that is OK. In as much as I celebrate and appreciate diversity purely for social justice reasons, I believe that truly practicing that belief means that we allow room for those who do not.
So, my words of advice extend beyond celebrating diversity for that reason. It is more about celebrating diversity because it makes you better. I submit that it will make you more successful in whatever path that you choose. Why? Because the beauty of diverse opinions and experiences is that they are multiplicative, not additive. When you assemble a group of people who think the same way because they have the same experience or background, the answers and outcomes are predictable, static, and not innovative. Conversely, when you put together people with diverse backgrounds and experiences, the answers and outcomes are unpredictable, frame-breaking, unique, and innovative.
When I was in my late twenties, I was trying to make that move from being an analyst to an investor. I had convinced myself that the key was finding the “right” way to invest. I was searching for this epiphany that would lead me down the right path. I figured that I could learn that in business school, so I enrolled. Much to my chagrin I met many successful people who were all applying different approaches to investing. How was that possible? Then it hit me— it was not about the approach but about how they had married a specific approach with their own personality. This realization would not have been possible unless I immersed myself with different people. Just like at Millbrook, we had all come from different paths to get to graduate school, but because we stopped, leaned into the community, and celebrated our common diversity, we were all able to learn. Probably not the example of diversity that you expected to hear, but I wanted to share it because to me it highlights how expansive the concept of diversity is and that is really a mindset to be practiced across our lives.
Class of 2024, you are about to enter a world that is more polarized than ever. Technological innovations such as the Internet and mass media make it easy to focus insularly. It can be understandably scary to lean into your community and celebrate diversity. My advice, wish, and plea is for you to resist this temptation. Be the ones who have uncomfortable conversations with people who have different views and experiences than you. Reject the principle that living in an echo chamber that reinforces your thoughts is healthy. Embrace a growth mindset – the faculty, staff, and administration at Millbrook placed a bet on you. Take what you have learned as a part of this amazing community and spread it to the world. We need you!
The next time you travel through Grand Central Station, you do not need to stop and get to know strangers unless you want to – in which case I highly encourage it! Instead, perhaps it can be a reminder to take stock. Appreciate the fact that everyone who was there took a different path. Ask yourself, have I leaned into my community? Have I celebrated diversity?
Congratulations, Class of 2024. We are all so proud of you!
Back
Today, we get to celebrate that accomplishment with the class of 2024. Class of 2024, can I get a round of applause for the faculty, staff, and administration of Millbrook? I also want to thank the parents of the class of 2024. The decision to send your kids to Millbrook is a calculated and well-thought-out choice, but it is still a bet. Now, as bets go, the track record is stellar. I am sure you all did your research, and Millbrook passes all the gates to be considered a safe and reliable bet. It sure beats betting on the horse at Preakness a few weeks ago or blackjack in a casino; nonetheless, we all said that we think our children will benefit from this experience and are willing to have them live and sleep somewhere else before college.
It was not an easy decision for my wife and I who had not experienced boarding school firsthand, so on behalf of the board I just want to congratulate the parents of 2024’s on hitting the most important jackpot that you ever will in your life. Parents of the class of 2024 – you nailed it. It is my opinion that your investment in your children – now adults - has outperformed any investment or any choice that you have made thus far in your lives. Class of 2024 Can I get a round of applause for the parents of Millbrook!
Class of 2024 – on to you! In a recent conversation with a 2024 graduate of Millbrook and a friend of my daughter (Sammy), this young man reflected on an interesting question – how did we all get to Millbrook? What caused our paths to cross in this amazing place? We quickly concluded that every single story of how and why was different. Yet for four years, for most, paths collided, and none of the Class of 2024 graduates will be the same ever again because of the intersection of their path with other classmates.
On multiple days each week, I get on the train to Grand Central Station. I pass through that great hall with thousands of other people. Except when I run into a friend here or there, as soon as I leave, the faces of the people I see are erased from my mind. The identities of those people, their hopes and dreams until the next day when I walk by the same people without knowing that I walked by them the day before or what had transpired in their lives in the last 24 hours.
I am not suggesting that we should all interrupt our morning commute to get to know our fellow commuters or that this would even be practical. I raise the example only to point out the similarities but, more importantly, the stark differences between that great train station and Millbrook. In both, we intersect with people who are all on different paths, but at Millbrook, the journey becomes intertwined. Community is developed, and diversity of experience and thought become the building blocks of growth, change, maturation, and love. I will not pretend that this means that things are always easy and fun. Living and breathing communities experience pain, hurt, and loss, and the Class of 2024 certainly knows about this. But my advice to the graduates is that the return on investment of leaning into your community and embracing diverse perspectives is one of the most valuable investments that you can make in your life when you leave here.
As we get older, engagement becomes more and more optional. Community service in college and life is not something that you have to show up for on Saturday morning. There is no sign-in at formal dinners and assemblies. It is truly a choice – a choice which you have all earned by the hard work that you have put in to reach this milestone and to become an adult. Although it is a choice, I want to submit to you that it is a choice that has ramifications for your own prosperity, happiness, and health.
For the next 30-50 years of your lives, you will be busy. There will be enough things that you have to do that fill up your days and then some. College academic work, first jobs, families, and children. Those responsibilities alone are more than enough to fill our time, and they are really important things that should be priorities. But in my opinion, they do not completely fill the soul. I submit that by leaning into your community and embracing diverse experiences, you will have more success and happiness in all aspects of your life – academic work, jobs, and, most importantly, family. These acts will support you and strengthen your life and the lives of others.
What are examples of this? How do we lean into our communities? How do we embrace diversity? These have been modeled here for you at Millbrook in small and large ways. The most basic example is the imperative of being known and needed. One of the most innocent but important misconceptions about inclusion is that the act of inclusivity means that we do not see differences. It makes sense – right? You want people to think that you do not see their differences or treat them differently because of those unique aspects. I get that sentiment. But to be known and needed means that you are seen and appreciated. Leaning into your community here at Millbrook for the last four years has made someone who felt "other" feel known and needed, but I submit to you that the act of seeing others also fills up your own cup of needs. Hang on to this – embrace it – lean into your future communities. Class of 2024 – embrace diversity!
The importance of diversity has long been discussed through a social justice lens. The imperative has been about doing the right thing. Immerse yourself in diverse communities because it is morally right. You can each develop your own view about this morality. For me, that happens to resonate, but it might not resonate with others. I think that is OK. In as much as I celebrate and appreciate diversity purely for social justice reasons, I believe that truly practicing that belief means that we allow room for those who do not.
So, my words of advice extend beyond celebrating diversity for that reason. It is more about celebrating diversity because it makes you better. I submit that it will make you more successful in whatever path that you choose. Why? Because the beauty of diverse opinions and experiences is that they are multiplicative, not additive. When you assemble a group of people who think the same way because they have the same experience or background, the answers and outcomes are predictable, static, and not innovative. Conversely, when you put together people with diverse backgrounds and experiences, the answers and outcomes are unpredictable, frame-breaking, unique, and innovative.
When I was in my late twenties, I was trying to make that move from being an analyst to an investor. I had convinced myself that the key was finding the “right” way to invest. I was searching for this epiphany that would lead me down the right path. I figured that I could learn that in business school, so I enrolled. Much to my chagrin I met many successful people who were all applying different approaches to investing. How was that possible? Then it hit me— it was not about the approach but about how they had married a specific approach with their own personality. This realization would not have been possible unless I immersed myself with different people. Just like at Millbrook, we had all come from different paths to get to graduate school, but because we stopped, leaned into the community, and celebrated our common diversity, we were all able to learn. Probably not the example of diversity that you expected to hear, but I wanted to share it because to me it highlights how expansive the concept of diversity is and that is really a mindset to be practiced across our lives.
Class of 2024, you are about to enter a world that is more polarized than ever. Technological innovations such as the Internet and mass media make it easy to focus insularly. It can be understandably scary to lean into your community and celebrate diversity. My advice, wish, and plea is for you to resist this temptation. Be the ones who have uncomfortable conversations with people who have different views and experiences than you. Reject the principle that living in an echo chamber that reinforces your thoughts is healthy. Embrace a growth mindset – the faculty, staff, and administration at Millbrook placed a bet on you. Take what you have learned as a part of this amazing community and spread it to the world. We need you!
The next time you travel through Grand Central Station, you do not need to stop and get to know strangers unless you want to – in which case I highly encourage it! Instead, perhaps it can be a reminder to take stock. Appreciate the fact that everyone who was there took a different path. Ask yourself, have I leaned into my community? Have I celebrated diversity?
Congratulations, Class of 2024. We are all so proud of you!
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