Human Biology Program

To all my fellow HUBI graduates, I want to say one thing.
We did it!

And to all the friends, family, and loved ones here today, I say one thing.
Thank you.

It would seem natural to start my summary of graduation on the first day of freshman year, but in reality, all of this started well before freshman orientation. It started with the actions of our loved ones, both those here in attendance today and the many more in further away places, who invested their time, energy, and love into each one of us. It is a safe bet to say that none of use would be here without that support.

We came to college, as HUBI majors, ready to learn. It didn’t take long for us to realize that this would not be like high school. Although our grades are individual, it's easy to see that much of college is communal. We went to the biggest lecture halls we could imagine. We ate in dining halls filled to the brim with students. We slept in shared dorms, oftentimes with roommates we had just met. We meet new people of all different types, and shared new experiences with them. All while trying our best to focus on what really mattered, which is the learning and development.

Here is where HUBI really came in. The Human Biology Program did not just give us the chance to learn chemistry. HUBI didn’t pack us like sardines into Ballantine 013. (Thanks for that!)

HUBI wasn’t just another class to learn what is the “powerhouse of the cell?”…… (it’s the mitochondria by the way).

Instead, HUBI put us at that rare intersection of the physical sciences, and the human context which ultimately gives those sciences meaning.

We learned about the chemistry which serves as the foundation of contemporary society, and then we put that into the social and economic context of our everyday lives. We learned about the biology of viral and bacterial pathogens, and then we learned how our public health policies either prevent, or ensure, outbreaks of those diseases.

In short, HUBI synthesized the environmental, the biological, the sociological, and the economic factors that shape our lives in ways both seen and unseen.

Wow, that sounds like a lot, doesn’t it? I know it felt like a lot. So, it should come as no surprise that it took an extraordinary group of educators and support to make this all happen. Our academic advisors guided us through the labyrinth of scheduling classes via the student center. Our professors facilitated our learning: to be discerning readers, critical thinkers, curious students, and global citizens. We should all give a special thanks too, ________(insert names here).

I am grateful for their efforts, and we all owe a tremendous debt to the HUBI team for working to create the next generation of leaders, physicians, scientists, and thinkers that this crazy world desperately needs.