Troy, N.Y. - World-renowned neurosurgeon Benjamin S. Carson today encouraged the members of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute's Class of 2003 to succeed by "using the talent that God has given you to elevate other people." Carson addressed an audience of approximately 1,314 graduates and their families at the university's 197th Commencement held on campus at Harkness Field.

Carson compared the challenges today's graduates face to those surmounted by their World War II-era predecessors. "We're no longer in the industrial age," he said. "We're in the information age. We're in the technical age. And we must be able to do something different now… Our future is your hands."

He warned the audience against embracing knee-jerk political correctness. "What we need to emphasize is tolerance and learning how to respect what other people believe - not unanimity of thought." In order to prevent a trend toward societal complacency, Carson argued, "we've got to learn how to recognize academic achievement and we've got to do it early."

Carson spelled out his parting advice to the graduates using the letters of the phrase "think big." He encouraged students to cultivate their Talents, lead Honest lives, learn from the Insights of others, be Nice to people, and continue to increase their Knowledge. He also stressed the value of Books, recommended in-depth learning rather than superficial knowledge, and encouraged open conversations about God, in whatever form.

Rensselaer President Shirley Ann Jackson honored Carson for "pioneering new surgical techniques to improve the lives of patients, especially children, and for dedicating his life to motivating and enabling disadvantaged youth to reach for their dreams."

Carson, Jackson said, is "a man who not only has achieved world renown for his gifts as a pediatric neurosurgeon, but who also has lured young people away from the transient glamour and glitz of sports and entertainment to the more enduring fulfillment of high academic achievement… [Carson is] a man who believes that education is liberation and that successful people do not have fewer problems, they are just undeterred by obstacles."

Medical Miracles
Carson walked into the world spotlight in 1987 when he led a medical team that successfully separated West German conjoined twins who were connected at the cranium, the first time this kind of surgery was performed. Both children survived.

Ten years later in 1997, Carson led a team of South African doctors in the first successful separation of twins joined at the top of the head. At 33, he became the youngest ever chief of pediatric neurosurgery in the U.S. His techniques have saved hundreds of children's lives.

Born into poverty, Carson knows what it takes to beat the odds. His father abandoned his family when he was 8, but his mother encouraged him to learn, and he was transformed from a fifth-grade "dummy" to a top scholar.

He is the author of three best-selling books, Gifted Hands, Think Big, and The Big Picture. All three incorporate his belief that discipline and exhibiting good character are at the core of true success. He earned a scholarship to Yale University, then graduated from the University of Michigan Medical School.

Honorary Degree Recipients
Rensselaer also conferred Honorary Doctor of Laws degrees on the Honorable Donna Shalala, Morris "Marty" Silverman, and Richard Solow; the university awarded an Honorary Doctor of Science on Richard Smalley. The Honorable Joseph Bruno will receive an honorary doctorate at Rensselaer's Honors Convocation this fall.

Jackson noted that all of this year's honorees "exemplify the ingenuity and imagination, and entrepreneurship and innovation that have been the hallmarks of [Rensselaer]."

During her 1993-2001 tenure as the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, Shalala expanded the Head Start educational program, boosted AIDS research, sought universal immunizations for children, and reformed welfare. She is now the president of the University of Miami. Silverman, a Troy native and well-known local philanthropist, has helped transform New York's Capital Region into a pace-setter in law, science, medicine, and education through the initiatives of his Marty and Dorothy Silverman Foundation. Smalley, the Hackerman Professor of Chemistry at Rice University, is one of three recipients of the 1996 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for the discovery of carbon atoms bound in the form of a ball, commonly known as fullerenes or "buckeyballs." Solow, a world-leading economist, received the Nobel Prize in 1987 for his seminal contributions to the theory of capital and economic growth. Lastly, Bruno, New York State Majority Leader, has worked tirelessly to bring the economic benefits of biotechnology and technological innovation to his constituents.

Contact: Caroline Jenkins
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