The Huston-Tillotson University 2011-2012 academic year culminated with the conferring of degrees during May’s Commencement Convocation for the largest graduating class under President Larry L. Earvin’s administration.
More than 2,500 family members and friends attended the early morning, outdoor ceremony full of pomp and circumstance for the 130 members of the Class of 2012 that also included two honorary degree recipients. Terry S. Smith and James R. Wilson both received the honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree. Philip Berber offered words of encouragement to the graduates as the keynote speaker.
Berber founded a series of start-ups during a 20-year entrepreneurial journey that led to the establishment of his current venture. He sold his Internet brokerage company CyBerCorp to Charles Schwab in 2000 to form, along with his wife Donna, A Glimmer of Hope. The social vendor and non-governmental organization (NGO) helps lift women and children out of extreme poverty in Ethiopia. To date, A Glimmer of Hope has helped to impact more than 2.5 million lives in rural Ethiopia by constructing more than 4,000 water projects, 335 school buildings, 170 health facilities, and distributed more than 17,000 micro-finance loans.
He recounted his failures and blessings that moved him into his current position that provided the background of his “Future Favors the Bold” message with three key points of encouragement: “Life is full of challenges and set backs…but it’s how you respond to them that will make all of the difference; do what you love and love what you do; and be in service to others, and, so you will be in service to yourself.” He compared his challenges and lessons learned to those of several of the graduates. “Keep believing in yourself. Never give up on yourself, and never, never, ever give up on your dreams,” he stated.
Berber also recalled the words of the late Steve Jobs, co founder of now Apple Inc., who encouraged graduates to love what they do. “Being engaged in a purposeful, meaningful way will fill your heart and sometimes, more than you know, will touch, or inspire, or help someone along their path,” Berber concluded.
Huston-Tillots University, Austin’s oldest institution of higher education, is a historically black university, offering Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees in 15 areas of study.
Visit www.htu.edu for more commencement highlights.
