HGSE Diploma Ceremony: Remarks of Dean Kathleen McCartney

Graduates, today is your day! All of us here today - relatives, friends, and members of the Ed School community, your community - applaud you, the class of 2008.

Students, many people have helped you to get to this special moment in your lives: your faculty mentors; the staff, from the librarians, to the program coordinators, to the staff in operations and student enrollment services; and, of course, your parents, grandparents, partners, children, and friends. Students, I invite you to thank the many people who have supported your studies here at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

This morning in Harvard Yard, graduates from the professional schools held up symbols to represent their chosen fields. You held up "Ed in '08" signs. You believe, as I do, that education is the civil rights issue of our time, because education provides the foundation for a just society. As you may know, this year marks the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which included education as a basic right of all persons. This declaration is one of the most beautiful and significant of human creations. Thank you for reminding everyone in Harvard Yard this morning of the importance of universal education.

Today we are gathered to celebrate your accomplishments as learners. Understanding how people learn is an important part of our mission as a school of education. There are many learning theories. Frustration is at the heart of most of them. When Sigmund Freud wrote about tension reduction, when Jean Piaget wrote about disequilibration, they were referring to frustration. Frustration drives learning.

You began learning before your birth, and you have continued to learn throughout your life. As a young child you learned something new every day - new actions, new words, and new feelings. When you were infants, you struggled with the simplest of acts - for example, grasping an object. The first time you tried, the object no doubt slipped through your fingers. You may have struggled many times before you were successful. You were frustrated, and your frustration resulted in learning. As you grew, you were frustrated by so many things - stacking your blocks, separating from your parents, connecting sounds with letters, learning to wait your turn to play on the swings, solving for "x" in algebra class, writing your first college term paper, and writing your last paper - for some of you it was your dissertation. But you mastered all these tasks. You learned again and again from the many frustrations you encountered along the way.

As a professor, I have lectured about the value of frustration for the past 25 years, but I learned something new about frustration this year. In March we invited four alumni who are education leaders back to campus. From them, I learned that frustration drives good work. I want to share their stories with you.

The first is about Seth Andrew, a 2002 graduate of the School Leadership Program and the founding principal of Democracy Prep, a charter school in Harlem. In Seth's words, "I couldn't just be angry and frustrated at bad decisions, politics, and bureaucracy. I had to actually work to create an environment where I could succeed." He now works in a school with "a team of committed people who share a vision," his vision - a school where all children can learn. Scholars from Democracy Prep are here today to celebrate the class of 2008, and I hope that one day some of them will choose to study here at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Seth's students have already learned to embrace frustration. One student, Jeremy, has written: "Sometimes dealing with frustration is really hard, but if you are able to handle it, that trouble can be a big help to you." Well said, Jeremy.

The second story is about Andres Alonso, a graduate of the class of 2006. Andres has a degree from Harvard Law School, but he was unhappy with his job on Wall Street. He changed careers and became a teacher in a school for emotionally disturbed children. When Andres adopted a child, he saw the school through a new lens. He saw his own child "hitting walls." Andres decided his calling was to serve in a leadership role, so he enrolled in our Urban Superintendents Program. He is now the Chief Executive Officer of the Baltimore Public Schools, where he oversees the education of 80,000 children in 194 schools. He said that many education leaders he knows credit frustration as the inspiration for their work. In Andres' words, "Frustration fuels the day...but it is a good thing."

Debbie Bial, a 2004 graduate of our doctoral program, was frustrated that smart, ambitious students from what she calls "broken school systems" were often discouraged from pursuing their dreams of college. Her frustration led her to develop a new way for these students to reach their potential as learners. Debbie is the founder of the POSSE Foundation, which has placed 1,850 students from disadvantaged high schools into top-tier colleges and universities. These students have won over $175 million in scholarships from Posse partner universities. And 90 percent of Posse students earn a bachelor's degree.

My last story is about Kira Orange-Jones, a 2006 graduate of our School Leadership Program. A former teacher, Kira has always believed that teachers are the key to any school reform effort. She told us that "teaching is a transformative experience," and that it opened her eyes to the widespread problems facing education, especially the achievement gap. When Hurricane Katrina swept through New Orleans, Kira saw destruction, but she also saw an important opportunity. As the Executive Director of Teach for America in New Orleans, Kira has the chance to help students and teachers find a new sense of possibility by literally and figuratively building schools from the ground up.

I have just told you four stories. I could share hundreds more. Today you join our special alumni community. One day, the dean of this school will be sharing your triumphs with another group of graduates. This morning in Harvard Yard, I presented you to the President, the fellows of Harvard College, and the Board of Overseers by saying, "As Dean of the Faculty of Education, I have the honor to present to you these women and men who will be leaders in education practice, policy, and research." Believe this, because it is true. Like Seth, Andres, Debbie, and Kira, you have a calling. You will work to replace ignorance with knowledge. You will work to replace inequity with social justice. And you will work to replace frustration with success.

I am tempted to wish you a life filled with frustration, but alas, I don't have to do so. You will find it in your work, as we all do. Whether you are working in a school, a museum, a no-profit organization, a college or university, a philanthropy, government, or in an organization you start - you will find frustration. Use it well. Use it to change yourself. And use it to change the world. I can promise you one thing in return. You will never wonder whether your work has meaning. You will know in your hearts that you are making a difference in the lives of learners. As educators, you are members of a noble profession.

And when you get too frustrated, or when you miss this special community, visit us here on Appian Way. This is your intellectual home, now and always, for you are alumni of the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Graduates, are you ready to change the world? Then it is time to award diplomas to the class of 2008. I invite my colleague, Shu Ling Chen, Assistant Dean for Doctoral Studies, to join me.

If you have ever been a teacher, you know that it is very hard to say goodbye to your students. But we know that you leave us to do good work, important work. We wish you success and fulfillment. Once again, let's applaud the 2008 graduating class of the Harvard Graduate School of Education.