May 16, 2011 - Claremont, CA -

Watch the Commencement ceremony on HMC's YouTube channel.

Graduating Senior David Rolfe's commencement speech

Graduating seniors were encouraged to "share science with everyone," and "do things you are not ready to do" at Harvey Mudd College's 53rd Commencement ceremony on Sunday, May 15, 2011.

HMC conferred bachelor of science degrees upon 177 students.

Marissa Mayer, Google's first female engineer and the youngest member of its executive operating committee, delivered the commencement address. Mayer encouraged the graduating class to "Do things you are not ready to do," as she did when she changed her career plans from pre-med to computer science, and as she did again when she decided to work for a then unheard-of Google. "The turning point for me was when I realized that I would learn more at Google trying to build a company regardless of whether we failed or succeeded than I would at any of the other companies I had offers from."

"Doing something you aren't ready to isn't comfortable," Mayer told students. "But, in pushing through that discomfort, you'll learn a lot more about yourself. You'll learn that you can do something you thought you couldn't."

Senior class speaker David Rolfe urged his classmates to "Share science with everyone." Joking that his classmates might not feel so enthusiastic about talking about science after four years of studying until their heads hurt, he went on to eloquently describe the world's need for scientific knowledge and why Harvey Mudd College graduates can and must be ambassadors of science.

"The scientific method is the best tool that humanity has to reach objective conclusions about the world around us," Rolfe told his classmates. "No matter what you majored in at Mudd, you have undoubtedly seen the power and the beauty of the system. But if you do not tell others about the importance of science, and the elegance of math, the world will become more illiterate in technical fields that govern all of our lives. Lawmakers may defund research and pass laws that demean science and prevent the next generation from understanding it. People may not vaccinate their kids or prevent global warming from spiraling out of control."

"All I'm asking you to do is share a little bit of what you've learned here with the people out there, because there are people living in ignorance, lacking understanding of the beauty of math and the power of science," Rolfe continued. "They make decisions that hurt themselves and others. If you do nothing, they will continue to do harm inadvertently. They will teach their children that science is useless and resort to non-truths. But we know differently and that's why we've been slaving away for the past four years. We know how beautiful, powerful and relevant science, math and technology are. So go and tell everyone about science. When you do, you will empower others, transform lives, and in your own little way, change the world for the better."

President Klawe commended the graduates and described the ways in which the Mudd experience transforms students. "Harvey Mudd College is a place where community members take on important hard problems, learn from failure, and go forward to be successful," Klawe said. "I know the class of 2011 will continue to do this throughout your careers. I couldn't be prouder of you."

Professor of Computer Science and outgoing Chair of the Department of Computer Science Mike Erlinger was awarded the Henry T. Mudd Prize for service to the College. Erlinger was one of the first computer scientists at HMC when he arrived at the College 30 years ago; he received the award for his "commitment, kindness, passion, collegiality and expertise," among other qualities, and his dedication to building the Computer Science Department, now widely recognized for its leadership in undergraduate education and research.