UW commencement gets some added joy: sunshine

William H. Gates Sr. told graduates at the University of Washington commencement ceremony Saturday that global equality could be their cause and accomplishment, just as racial justice and civil rights were defining movements of his generation.

"When I was young," Gates, 84, told an estimated 43,000 graduates and their families and friends at Husky Stadium, "there was little public interest in thinking of equality on a worldwide scale. You are different. Since you are aware of people suffering, you will act on their behalf."

About 4,100 graduates were on hand to accept some of the 12,000 degrees the UW awarded. A cool and cloudy spring gave way to brilliant sunshine. African drums punctuated the speeches, sunglasses flashed amid the procession of caps and gowns, and a few students carried bright cardboard arrows over their heads, so their cheering families could locate them.

"I'm sure they spotted me, but I haven't found them yet," said Brian Trinh, who was graduating with a double-major in chemistry and biochemistry. He was one of the few graduates interviewed Saturday who said he had a job awaiting him — in research at the UW.

With the economy still sputtering and jobs scarce, many of the graduates said they planned to stall — taking a year off to travel, study for graduate-school entrance exams, and get crucial work experience, even if it means unpaid, volunteer positions.

"The economy is definitely a concern," said Jamie Thompson, who graduated with a degree in biology and plans to spend next year volunteering at a hospital in Olympia and shadowing a primary-care doctor before taking the exams for medical-school admission.

"There's not a guarantee anymore that you'll graduate and a job will be there. That's scary."

Lori Hanson, one of the inaugural graduates of the UW's new College of the Environment, has a job interview this week with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

A year ago, amid one of the worst employment outlooks for graduates in decades, the agency had a hiring freeze. Now, in a slightly improved economy, they are filling a few positions and Hanson said her fingers are crossed.

"The economy makes it difficult," she said, "but I think it can be done."

The 135th UW commencement was the last at which President Mark Emmert presided.

A UW alum who headed the school for the past six years, Emmert is leaving to become president of the National Collegiate Athletic Association.

Emmert joked to the graduates that he "went to college and never left," but said now that he is leaving, he feels both "terribly sad" and "more than a little nervous." Like Gates, he spoke of his own life lessons, including the value of taking risks, listening to other people and having fun.

"Be someone who loves what you do," he said.

The UW also honored Bruce Nordstrom, a former chairman of the board for the national clothing retailer, as its distinguished alumni. The university awarded honorary degrees to Kent Stowell and Francia Russell, former co-artistic directors of Pacific Northwest Ballet, for their nearly 20 years of artistic achievement.

Gates, a prominent Seattle attorney and father of Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, is one of the university's most distinguished alumni and generous benefactors.

He earned his undergraduate and law degrees at the UW. His late wife, Mary, served for 19 years on the Board of Regents, the law-school building is named for him, and he now serves on the Board of Regents with his daughter Kristianne Blake.

Gates told the graduates he hasn't always been comfortable urging young people to embrace public life. But he said his own life would have been poorer without public service and good citizenship is essential to changing society for the better.

In a measure of the Gates family's legacy, one of the graduates at Saturday's commencement was Johar Bakaal, a Somali immigrant whose four years of tuition at the UW was paid by a Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Achiever's Scholarship.

Bakaal, 22, who came to the U.S. eight years ago speaking no English, quoted a Somali proverb: Agoon la'aan waa iftiin la'aan. Without knowledge there is no light.

He said it also means the world is diminished by each person who does not have the light.

Bakaal said he hopes to study law at the UW and become an immigration lawyer helping the Somali community — after taking a year off.

Lynn Thompson: 206-464-8305 or lthompson@seattletimes.com