Sports Author Alexander Wolff, National Social Worker Ira Colby Present Commencement Addresses
Sports as Tool for Social Good
AlexAnder Wolff, one of the longest- tenured writers at “Sports Illustrated” and the award-winning author of celebrated books on basketball, told Springfield College graduates that they “get it. Like me, you recognize that what we do with our bodies is as essential to what makes us human as thinking and feel- ing…You recognize that sports not only deserve a place in our lives, but that they can be at the very core of how we fulfill our poten- tial and how we serve others.” Wolff said, “James Naismith was something
of a dreamer. Perhaps his most audacious notion was a belief that he could change people, and hence the world, through sports. And, before Stebbins the custodian produced those immortal peach baskets on that Decem- ber morning in 1891, Naismith gave free rein to his desire to use sports to repair the world. “And today, people around the world are
using sports as a tool for social good on an unprecedented scale,” said Wolff. “This move- ment goes by the name of ‘sports for develop- ment and peace,’ and it doesn’t merely champion play for play’s sake, though that’s part of it, in accordance with Article 31 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which holds that every child has a right to play. More than that, it’s a movement that
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recognizes that sports, as Nelson Mandela has said, ‘can change the world.’ “So I hope you’ll continue to find a place for
sports, if only in recognition of its potential as a tool for good. You may just see the world change. And you may help bring that change about,” Wolff concluded.
Exchange Technological Highway for Human Interaction
IrA Colby ’71, the president of the Council on Social Work Education and dean of the Univer- sity of Houston Graduate College of Social Work, advised graduates of advanced degree programs to “exit the technological highway for the dirt road… the dirt road is a place where you talk with people face to face, and walk hand in hand with them.” Colby said, “Let me suggest to you that,
every so often, each and every one of us exit the technological highway for the dirt road. The dinner table each night is a good place to find the dirt road— no TV, no radio, no Black- Berry, no smart phones, no iPod earplugs. Make your dinner table a dirt road for 15 minutes or 20 minutes. Stretch it to an hour. And what do you do in that time? You talk. You talk with those for whom you care. You look at each other. You listen to each other. You support each other. You value each others’
experiences, and ultimately, create true mean- ing for the person.” At its 124th commencement ceremonies,
Springfield College awarded 842 bachelor's degrees, 468 master's degrees, five Ph.D.s, and four certificates of advanced graduate study. The College awarded honorary doctor of Humanics degrees to Wolff, Colby, and Jani Flynn, first lady of Springfield College. Flynn has expanded the position of campus
first lady into being an ambassador — a bridge between the community and Springfield College and its students. Since the 1999 inau- guration of her husband, Springfield College President Richard B. Flynn, she has traveled throughout the United States and abroad with him, strengthening the College’s relationships. More than fulfilling the traditional roles of her office, she has also played an active role in campus improvement projects, and has been a tireless advocate and supporter of the full range of campus activities involving the students, faculty, staff, and visitors. They include academic lectures, athletics events, performances, arts exhibits and displays, student activities, campus committees, trustee events, and more. She has also been active in area civic and cultural programs.1
TRIANGLE 3 Vol . 82, No. 1
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