McLean neighbor Steve Case was the keynote graduation speaker Saturday night as 428 students graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology.
Student Graduation Chair Chris Gibson introduced Case, co-founder of AOL* who asked the students to stand up and then wave so that he could take a picture of them to post on Twitter and Facebook. (Read Case’s tweets and see the photos he took during the ceremony on his Twitter account.)
Student Graduation Chair Chris Gibson introduced Case, calling him “tech-savvy,” “business smart,” and a “good philanthropist”. Before his speech, Case asked the students to stand up and then wave so that he could take a picture of them to post on Twitter and Facebook, demonstrating his commitment to interactive communication with technology. [Read Case’s tweets and see the photos he took during the ceremony on his Twitter account.]
Case described how he started the company that became America Online and urged the graduates to use their skills in science, math and technology to innovate, stressing the importance of entrepreneurs who have created "new products and services that have changed the world."
"The lives of successful people often take unpredictable twists and turns and you sometimes have to fasten your seat belt and enjoy the ride,” said Case. “Indeed it is often good to be forced out of your comfort zone as that may open up new vistas of possibility."
The key to success, Case explained in his advice, is to focus on the three P’s: people, passion and perseverance.
"No matter what you do in life, your ability to succeed will largely be dependent on your ability to work with people,” Case said. “Indeed, it is often said that what you do is less important than who you do it with; that the people you surround yourself with, will ultimately be the principal determinant of the course your life will take. So as you embark on this next phase of your education, and the continuation of your professional life, build a network around you that can help sustain your creative drive.”
Additional words of advice were delivered by class of 2003 TJ alumnus Yohannes Abraham, who encouraged the graduates to “read amazing books,” discuss them with their peers and develop their own thinking on the topics and maintaining their TJ friends. Abraham grew up in Springfield and joined then Senator Obama’s Iowa Caucus campaign five days after graduating from Yale with a degree in political science. He worked on President Obama's 2008 campaign, and later at the White House. He will join President Obama's 2012 campaign team.
Case and his family live in Merrywood, an estate on the Potomac River, once owned by Jacqueline Kennedy's parents. Later owned by well-known developer Alan Kay who gave great parties there.
s speech and some of the ceremony’s lighter moments here. A photo gallery from Saturday’s ceremony is available
McLean brims with neighbors who are frequent high school and college graduation speakers. If you know others, please send us their name, the high school or college where they spoke and the date. Please include a favorite quote from their speech. You can reach us at bobbi.bowman@patch.com
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Full Disclosure: Patch is an AOL company. Case is no longer associated with AOL.
