With over 7,000 students receiving master’s, bachelor’s or law degrees, the class of 2018 is one of the largest classes in UW-Madison history, Chancellor Rebecca Blank said in her speech Saturday afternoon. Of those graduating, roughly 6,500 students met at Camp Randall to take part in UW-Madison’s 165th Spring Commencement.
David Muir, a journalist for ABC Broadcast Television Network, delivered the ceremony's keynote address to a crowd of 41,986. Muir reminded graduates that their voices and actions have power and to use that power to create safer, smarter and more connected communities in a world that is often divided.
“We need your energy, your spirit, your smarts, now more than ever.”
In addition to highlighting the accomplishments of this year’s senior class, Chancellor Blank said in her speech that the class of 2018 will have no problem entering the “real world” because they have been educated in the tradition of the Wisconsin idea — a commitment to public service.
Blank concluded her speech by recognizing the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s death. She encouraged graduates to ask themselves what King called “life’s most persistent and urgent question:” What are you doing for others?
“If you keep asking that question, you will keep finding ways to use your knowledge and skills to make the real world a little better.”
