University of Vermont alumni are united by their intense association with a particular place, era, and culture. This becomes vividly evident during our annual Reunion — a true parade of life, the weekend is an opportunity to walk across a broad landscape of time. In early June, nearly two thousand alumni returned to campus for Reunion 2000, and it was my privilege to attend a variety of events and meet many fascinating, accomplished people who, long after leaving our campus, have remained steadfast in their commitment to UVM.

At the Green and Gold Luncheon, a tradition for the classes celebrating reunions of fifty years and more, I met Marjorie Pierce, UVM Class of 1925. Seventy-five years after graduating from UVM, Ms. Pierce returned to her alma mater with enthusiasm. She was intellectually curious, interested in everything that was going on at the university, well-spoken, amusing, and charming. A vibrant woman, Ms. Pierce ran her own store in Rutland until retiring just five years ago.

Consider the changes that Marjorie Pierce has witnessed since she earned her UVM diploma. The Great Depression. World War II. Sputnik. The Cold War. A man on the moon. Vietnam. The toppling of the Berlin Wall. The ascension of technology, and the revolution of the Internet. But Marjorie Pierce hasn’t only witnessed a radically changed world in seventy-five years, she has grown with it and thrived with grace and good humor.

Marjorie Pierce is a living example of our greatest hopes for today’s students and for the new graduates of the Class of 2000, honored just two weeks before Reunion at commencement. Many of today’s graduates will take jobs in companies that did not exist when they were first-year students. They will do business that no one had imagined, in a way that no one could have imagined. The pace of change is ever accelerating. A strong grounding in the liberal arts and the application of knowledge, and the creation of a propensity for lifelong learning have never been more critical. Imagine the change that the Class of 2000 will have witnessed when they return to campus for Reunion 2075.

In my inauguration speech several years ago, I offered up a newcomer’s attempt at defining a UVMer. “It is a person with a lifelong commitment to learning, a willingness to accept responsibility, and an ability and a desire to work with others toward shared goals. A UVMer approaches life with energy, enthusiasm, and a desire to make a difference. This person listens to and learns from the ideas and experiences of people from very different backgrounds. We act with the courage of our own convictions and are willing to take on the world.”

UVMers like Marjorie Pierce make that definition ring true. I’m optimistic that our Class of 2000 leaves campus well prepared to follow her example and that of the thousands of UVM alumni “taking on the world” in their own individual ways. It is a proud heritage.