Good morning UMass Dartmouth!

What a weekend!

Each year our Homecoming Weekend brings into sharp relief the reasons why we are all here. We create knowledge and we create educated alumni, and in doing both we change the world.

Hundreds of alumni visited our campus over the last few days, and I only wish every student and faculty member could have had the opportunities that I had to interact with them and hear their heartfelt stories about what this university has meant to them.

In a word, it has meant everything. In public remarks and private conversations they talked of inspiring teachers, lifelong friends, memorable events. They spoke of lives transformed by their experiences here.

I think of Norma and William Markey, who met as students at New Bedford Tech in the early 1950s, changed the lives of thousands of students as school teachers, and have been tireless in their efforts to build our alumni association.

I think of Bob Leduc who graduated from the College of Engineering in the 1970s and has risen to president of Hamilton Sundstrand's Flight Division. He told an audience of alumni and friends at the Sunday morning Alumni Brunch that our engineering students can compete with their peers from any institution. He said our students hit the ground running in the global economy because their professors prepare them for the real world competition they will face. Bob Leduc unconditionally credits his alma mater with this own success.

I think of Lee Blake, who was honored by the Alumni Association with its annual university employee award. Lee spoke eloquently of growing up in New Bedford as an African-American and receiving the encouragement to join our Upward Bound program, which opens pathways to higher education for urban youths. Lee has spent her career creating those same kinds of pathways for thousands of other young people from New York City to the SouthCoast.

I think of our two Senators, Mark Montigny of New Bedford and Joan Menard of Fall River.

Sen. Montigny, who graduated in the early 1980s, was a passionate defender of higher education opportunity while a student here and remains an articulate advocate for us on Beacon Hill. Following his induction into the Corsair Athletic Hall of Fame Friday night, he spoke about his time here and the life lessons he learned through the combination of athletics and education.

In accepting the Alumni Association's service award Sunday, Sen. Menard, an honorary alumna who has broken down so many of the barriers for women in Massachusetts politics, said she has made UMass Dartmouth one of her top legislative priorities because this institution is a true catalyst for social and economic justice.

I think of Dave Schweidenback, who graduated in the 1970s and soon embarked on a global mission. He collected nearly 100 bicycles on campus this weekend as part of his Pedals for Progress initiative. The bicycles will be shipped to third world countries where one of mankind's greatest inventions - the wheel - will empower families and communities.

And I think of our late colleague Jim Kaput, math professor extraordinaire, who was posthumously awarded the Alumni Association Service Award. In his 36 years here, Jim helped create thousands of alumni who are now out there transforming the lives of thousands of others. It was recalled by one of this week's speakers that Jim taught introductory math to a young woman who, previous to coming to this campus, was something of a math phobic. That woman would later become a math teacher. Such is the powerful impact that our faculty, our university, has on individuals.

Our alumni all offer the most compelling evidence that the work we do here has a ripple effect that spans the globe and generations. The teaching, knowledge creation, and inspiration that occur here on a daily basis are truly timeless.

Jean F. MacCormack
Chancellor
University of Massachusetts Dartmouth