Lyman Page Award Winner Welcomes the Class of 2019

Elaine Young Speaking at Convocation

This year's Edward Phelps Lyman Award recipient is Professor Dr. Elaine Young.

Prof. Young, who teaches in the Robert P. Stiller School of Business, exemplifies dedication to students and excellence in teaching and advising, as well as community service.

She takes initiative with both students and colleagues to continually ask, "What's next?"

Dr. Young has shared her expertise with the Burlington and greater community. Her commitment to students, colleagues and community is evident.

Professor Young has the professional experience, teaching credentials, communication skills and track-record of community service that make her an asset to Champlain.

She is an engaged educator and positive role model to students and faculty, possesses an amazing work ethic, demonstrates thoughtful leadership and is the consummate team member.


Wow. Look at all of you. The Class of 2019!

I just listened to the President's speech over at Akin Lawn and watched as you headed off in your groups and left your family members. You've mostly moved into your dorms if you live on campus, and for those of you living off campus, you've probably gotten the lay of the land at this point. Most of you are now, officially, "on your own". Perhaps for the first time.
How does it feel?
How many of you are excited? ... thrilled? ... nervous? .... anxious? ....hungry?
Last year at Convocation my colleague and friend Dr. Nancy Kerr encouraged students to take out their cellphones and take a selfie, or a picture of the crowd and document this moment. I'm going to continue that tradition and encourage you all to take a minute and go for it. Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook...just use the hashtag #champ2019. Go ahead. I'll take my own and wait for you.


Oh and if you want to, go ahead and Meerkat or Periscope this speech, or live Tweet it. I can't speak for my platform partners up here, but while I'm speaking go right ahead. I'll trust that you aren't going to just text random stuff to your friends. Naturally, texting what I have to say is ok, though.
So here we are. Getting ready to embark on a grand adventure together. Each of you filled with a variety of emotions - emotions that I feel too. I've watched this process of first years entering Champlain for almost 15 years and I've even watched my own daughter go through the process too. As a professor and a parent this time of transition is filled with all sorts of awesome. Really. There's pride, wonder, nostalgia, worry, and even relief. As I thought about what I'd say today, and all the "advice" I wanted to drop, I realized that everything I had to say could be boiled down into one very distinct and specific message.
This education thing you're doing? The next four years of your life? It's yours. Let me say that again. It's YOURS. It belongs to you. This is no longer high school where you go through the motions because everyone tells you to. This is college. This is expensive. But no matter who is paying for it, or how you are making this work in your life, remember that this education belongs to you. So own it. If you love what you are doing, then stick to it. If you don't then switch your major. Don't let your families, your friends, even your professors have so much influence on you that you don't pursue your education to its fullest. The next four years are so full of learning that you cannot be passive about it. Face each day with a sense of purpose because you never know what the day will bring and what you will learn from it. Yep. This is YOUR education.
I've had the privilege of getting to know many students during my time at Champlain. And I've watched all of them come in as first years and over the four years (sometimes five) that they have been here, I have watched every single one grow, change, and become young professionals who were ready to take on the world when they graduated. Trust me when I say to you that the person you are today, sitting here at Convocation, is NOT the person you will be in four years when you graduate from Champlain College.
The emotions you are feeling today are there because you know deep down inside that you are getting ready to embark on an adventure that will expand your mind, change your point of view, increase your knowledge, and make you a different person. I'm here to tell you that it is one of the most awesome experiences you can have. Look forward to it. Be excited and above all be open to all that is coming.
We live in times of great change. Every day we are reading news about challenges our country is facing. We are entering an election cycle and you all will have the opportunity to vote in your first presidential election. You are on a college campus where you can learn about other's points of view. You can get involved and engage with clubs, the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, the Student Government Association, Sustain Champlain - heck you can learn how to raise bees and sell honey! You can practice civic action and get involved with our Center for Service and Civic Engagement. As a student here you can exercise your voice and if you are unhappy with something this college is doing, you can band together and change it. Here is where you begin to learn that you not only have a voice, but you can use that voice to have a positive impact on those around you.
Every single moment you are at Champlain College is a learning opportunity. A step towards your future you. Think about it. Every single moment. Even right now.
In and out of the classroom you can take steps to your future you. And here are some things that will get you there:
Help each other. Right now, turn to the people around you and smile. A smile is the first step to friendships. Go beyond your dorm and your major. Some of the most powerful and long lasting friendships I've seen students make have come from being open to accepting others into their lives.
Take advantage of every opportunity. Be curious and open minded. Take on internships and work-based experiences. Say yes to study abroad. Get involved. Start a club. Challenge your stereotypes. Push your boundaries. Each time you do, you'll be rewarded.
Use your resources. You've by now heard all about our "human touch". (You just heard it from Pres. Laackman when he talked about Mind, Heart and Body.) Well it's not just marketing (and I know marketing). Professors and staff actually do care. You aren't alone here. Really. When you have questions, when you are uncertain, when you don't know what action to take, even if you don't know what question to ask...reach out to one of us. We will help you.
Remember that College is HARD. Change is HARD. Learning is HARD. So be kind to yourself. Eat well, get enough sleep. When you are feeling stressed, you are not alone. Your peers are stressed too...whether it is class work, personal life stuff, missing your family and friends, feeling overwhelmed...know that you are not the only person feeling this way and remember what I said earlier about using your resources. Don't hide. Talk it out. You WILL be ok!
Do NOT be afraid to FAIL. College is where you learn. When you FAIL remember that it is just your First Attempt In Learning. Entrepreneurs talk time and time again about the amount of failure they had before they succeeded. Now is the time to fail so you can learn and be ready when you enter the professional world. Don't let failure stop you. EVERYONE fails. You belong here. Take it in stride. Learn from it. Grow.
Finally, relax. Chill Out. Enjoy the experience. Remember that there really is nothing so bad that it cannot be worked out.
And above all, resolve to
Be.
Awesome.
Every.
Single.
Day.
Because you are awesome and you are here at Champlain College where we know you will flourish as you embark on one of the most amazing journeys of your life.


Founded in 1878, Champlain College is a small, not-for-profit, private college in Burlington, Vermont, with additional campuses in Montreal, Canada, and Dublin, Ireland. Champlain offers a traditional undergraduate experience from its beautiful campus overlooking Lake Champlain and over 90 residential undergraduate and online undergraduate and graduate degree programs and certificates. Champlain's distinctive career-driven approach to higher education embodies the notion that true learning occurs when information and experience come together to create knowledge. Champlain College is included in the Princeton Review's The Best 384 Colleges: 2019 Edition. For the fourth year in a row, Champlain was named a "Most Innovative School" in the North by U.S. News & World Report's 2019 "America's Best Colleges,” and a “Best Value School” and is ranked in the top 100 “Regional Universities of the North” and in the top 25 for “Best Undergraduate Teaching.” Champlain is also featured in the Fiske Guide to Colleges for 2019 as one of the "best and most interesting schools" in the United States, Canada and Great Britain and is a 2019 College of Distinction. For more information, visit champlain.edu.