Transcript of Interim Dean Jacqueline Isaacs’s Remarks
Hello Class of 2020 Graduates, Parents, Families, and Friends,
I’m Jackie Isaacs, interim dean of the College of Engineering at Northeastern University. I’d like to welcome you all to this very special occasion. An event to celebrate You and your impressive accomplishments on your graduation from our College of Engineering. All of us at the College and at the university—your professors, advisors, staff, department chairs and the administration—we wish we were there, we wish we were all there at the university campus together to share this exciting milestone. And we will be…soon. But in the meantime, we are honored to gather with you virtually to celebrate and congratulate you on your achievements.
Our engineering programs are rigorous to prepare you to be the next generation of leaders, ready and capable of addressing global challenges and making the world a better place. The world is facing one of those challenges right now—an unprecedented pandemic that is putting people’s lives at risk and unfortunately taking some others. As engineers, we have a commitment to use our knowledge and innovation to address societal problems. And I’m proud to say that many of our faculty researchers and others are doing just that. From transforming our machine shop to develop protective medical equipment, to implementing modeling tools to help healthcare facilities plan their resources, our engineering faculty and students are making a difference. In this past semester, our students, have been so agile, creative, and supportive despite the challenges and sacrifices over the past months, and really I thank you all for that.
At this special time and occasion though, I hope you’ll take a moment to reflect back on your Northeastern journey. How you felt when first stepped foot on campus during orientation. All the wonderful memories you created from an abundance of activities and experiences—locally and globally. The bonds of friendship that will forever stay with you. And, of course, all that you have learned in the classroom, on the job, in the lab, and with your colleagues.
All of these experiences have helped give you strong roots to continue forward on your desired path whatever that path may be—starting a business, conducting research, innovating in industry, or continuing your education. I encourage you to always be bold and boundless. I also encourage you to become and to continue to be lifelong learners. The world is complex and ever-evolving. Staying current and enhancing knowledge will help you professionally as well as benefit society at large.
As graduates, you now become our engineering colleagues. You also join the Husky alumni community of more than 45,000! people around the globe. I hope you will stay in touch with us and become active members of our extended family as alumni.
Congratulations on this momentous achievement. You’ve all worked so hard. We’re very proud of you – all of you – and wish you much success in the future. I wish you well in your next endeavors to change the world and to make a difference! Congratulations to you all!
Back to Congratulatory Event for the COE Class of 2020 Graduates
j.isaacs@northeastern.edu
Economic-environmental assessment of alternative manu/nanomanufacturing routes towards sustainable design and manufacturing, societal implications of nanomanufacturing, with interdisciplinary collaborations in political science, philosophy, industrial hygiene and industrial engineering, development and assessment of educational games for engineering students and for K-12 outreach activities.