Last of the Firsts

Today was Commencement at Union, and a cold and miserable morning for it. Normally, the faculty are grateful for our spots on the Library collonnade, where we're out of the sun, and able to enjoy a slight breeze, but today, it was about twenty degrees colder than normal, and the breeze was more of a gale. Global warming, my ass.

It was also a memorable commencement for me personally, as it marked the graduation of my first group of advisees. Last year was the first class I'd seen all the way through their four years of college, and this year's bunch was the first class in which I was assigned to be the academic advisor for a group of freshmen, three guys who were in the seminar class we offer for entering students with an interest in physics.

By whatever quirk, I was assigned a bunch of kids that I could really hit it off with. That year's seminar class was a rambunctious lot in general-- one of my colleagues found them a little scary-- and I got assigned three of the most sociable members of the class. I invited them over for dinner on several occasions, and most of their visits ended with Kate having to chase them out the door. They would drop by my office moderately regularly to talk about classes, but also to talk about and recommend movies, books, tv shows, and weird Internet cartoons, among other things. Two of them graduated as physics majors, and the third stuck around the department for a couple of years before settling for a math major.

All in all, they've been a fun bunch, and while I'm happy to see them graduate, I'll miss having them around (If nothing else, I'll have to find a new source of recommendations for over-the-top kung fu movies...). Congratulations to Justin, Matt, and Rob (who aren't terribly likely to read this), and good luck in your future careers.

Congratulations also to their Physics and Astronomy classmates: Fatima, Aaron, Nicole, Ian, Amy, and Emily, who have also been terrific. All together, they're one of the strongest classes since I've been here, and they've certainly been one of the most entertaining to have around (which is not to say that the remaining classes are a bunch of boring schlubs, or anything-- this is just an exceptionally sociable group, especially for science nerds...). Congratulations on your graduation, and best wishes for the future.