Dean Emeritus Mike Eisenberg delivered these closing remarks at what will be his last convocation. Eisenberg retires in December after 15 years at the UW iSchool, a school he helped shape into one of the top information schools in the world.

"Thank you, Dean Bruce. I greatly appreciate the honor of being asked to say a few remarks to close this convocation. This is special for me in a number of ways.

First – these students. I’ve worked with many of these graduating students – on all levels, MLIS [particularly iYouth] and MSIM, PhD, and especially the Informatics students. This year’s graduates are very special indeed.  Second – this is my 15th year at the UW – my 15th graduation. That’s almost a generation!  Lastly, this will be my last convocation as a full-time faculty member. I will be retiring in December (and I hope that many of you will come back for the farewell bash in December). It’s been a great ride, and I am so proud of our iSchool and out community.  But, I’m really looking forward to the next phase in my life.

A lot of people ask, what am I going to do? I plan to spend a lot of time with my wife Carol, family, and friends and to take some time to just think and “be.” But, I’m sure I’ll be around the iSchool from time to time too.

Now, to share some brief thoughts. As you graduates know, it’s always wise to have a framework for a presentation. So, I’m going to use one that I’ve used before – some of the faculty and staff have heard this before. Please – no rolling of the eyes.

The best graduation speech I ever heard was also the shortest. Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. (outstanding author of my generation, wrote Slaughterhouse 5, Cat’s Cradle, Breakfast of Champions, and more) gave this address at my alma mater, Syracuse – 20 years ago; I Googled it – it was 1994.

Vonnegut said 3 things to the audience:
1. Thank you
2. I’m sorry
3. We love you.

By thank you, Vonnegut said, thank you for being educated. That way I don’t have to speak to a bunch of nincompoops.  Well, I have many more thanks to give than just that. Thank you – all of you. The iSchool Staff - for this convocation, for our programs, for being the glue that keeps our iSchool together. To my faculty colleagues – you are simply the best. In his speech, Vonnegut said – “the most wonderful thing, the most valuable thing you can get from an education is this - the memory of one person who could really teach, whose lessons made life and yourselves much more interesting and full of possibilities than you had previously supposed possible.  I ask this of everyone here, including all of us up here on the platform - How many of us, how many of you, had such a teacher?  Kindergarten counts. Please hold up your hands.”  There is no greater calling that being a teacher.

I also want to thank the iSchool leadership – Harry, Matt Saxton, Cheryl Metoyer, Mary Clark (who works financial miracles that few see but many feel, Wendie Phillips, Michele Norris, and 2 amazing administrative assistants, Karen Erickson and Cris Fowler. I’m sorry for not being able to mention each and every one.  You are special and caring team.

Thank you to you students – for believing in our iSchool and embracing our values and our information vision. And to the family and friends here and online, thanks for sharing what’s most precious to you—your children. Thanks for taking a risk, for believing in your students, the UW, and this school.

And a very special thanks (and applause) to my wife and lifelong partner, Carol. If I am partly responsible for creating this wonderful iSchool, I can assure everyone that it would not have happened without my best friend and best supporter, Carol.

So, thanks was Vonnegut’s number 1 point. Number 2 was, “I’m sorry.  I apologize because of the terrible mess the planet is in. But it has always been a mess. There have never been any "Good Old Days," there have just been days. And as I say to my grandchildren, "Don’t look at me.  I just got here myself."

Here, I must take issue with Mr. Vonnegut (who is one of my heroes by the way). Yes, there are problems in our world and cleaning up the planet is part of that, but we’ve actually made great strides and progress. Yes, there are still wars and famine, and people still do terrible things to each other. But, we are striving to improve things in our global, interconnected village, and we see progress in lower crime rates, expanded rights and equality, awareness of problems and a willingness to do something about it – especially here in the state of Washington, in Seattle, and at the UW.

Certainly, I wish that I and my generation had done more, but we of the sixties/seventies did some pretty important things – we advanced rights for women and civil rights for all. We went to the moon and ended the war in Vietnam, we began the environmental movement, and we made some amazing music that touched people all over the world. So, yes I apologize along with Vonnegut for not doing more, but as the Beatles said, “it’s getting better all the time.”

And you graduates – now it’s your turn. We’ve left you some messes to work on – but I KNOW that you are up to the task. You have it in your hearts and minds. And, you have something really special and powerful to bring to bear on the challenges – the information perspective.
That’s the ultimate gift from the iSchool to you. We’ve hammered it home over and over: what’s at the core of all that we do? What’s the answer to all questions?  People. Say it again. People.

You have the knowledge and skills necessary to change the world. Sure, go out there and make a zillion dollars,  but don’t forget to also use your information perspective to make the world a better place. The next 25 years will be extraordinary in terms of progress and possibilities, and information, libraries, and technology will be right at the center of it all.  In the past 25 years we’ve had the PC, Internet, Web, Google, mobile devices, and the cloud.  What’s next?  Well, you tell me! It’s yours to invent and use. I am so proud of you all, but I’m also totally confident that you have the knowledge and tools and values to put technology to work to make a difference.

Vonnegut’s last point was “   "We love you. We really do." To quote the Beatles again, All you need is love. Love is also a code word for what we just said that it’s all about. What is it that we value? What’s the answer to all questions? PEOPLE!

I know you are all anxious to get out of here and celebrate with family, friends, and classmates. But we’re always looking ahead to the next thing. So, do me a favor – take a moment to breathe this all in. The sign on my office door says, This Moment Matters. It really does. For each and every graduate here, this is a major accomplishment. You are now a graduate of the University of Washington – one of the top 20 universities on the planet. And, you are also a graduate of the Information School – widely recognized as being among the very top iSchools – if not THE top iSchool. We are the world-changing, ground-breaking, people-centered, innovative, and way cool Information School -- not at, but of the University of Washington.

So try to slow down just a little today.  Savor it.  Live the moment because it’s yours and you’ve earned it.

For the audience too!  You are part of this accomplishment and celebration. Revel in it. We’ll worry about parking and traffic and all those other small and large matters of life in just a minute. For right now, we are here with a single purpose and focus – to live the moment with our wonderful graduates.

Before closing our convocation I’m supposed to ask family and friends to remain in their seats until the recessional is complete, at which time you can rejoin your graduates for our reception in the front lobby.

And finally, I get the privilege of leading a UW iSchool tradition - from our leader and inspiration, Dean Harry Bruce.  We have a phrase that we like to use in the iSchool to emphasize our commitment to the School and to one another. We say – “the iSchool is my school”.

Now – I know that some of you are thinking – Oh no, he’s going to make us say “the iSchool is my school” (Well you’re right, that’s exactly what I am about to do).   For our supporters and friends and family in the audience, I know that you have been very patient and quiet and still throughout this long ceremony. This is your chance to make some real noise! When you call out “The iSchool is my School,” I want you to shout it loudly that it will travel all over the campus and all over Seattle.

Are you ready? One, two, three – the iSchool is my school!

Now, that’s the way to end a convocation. Thank you everyone for coming."