Today is a big day for 233 people who will be handed a piece of paper called a diploma to signify that their four years or more at Goshen College has ended with success. We congratulate all the graduates and wish them the best.
There will be 217 undergraduate degrees awarded and 16 master’s degrees. Before the ceremony, Raj Biyani, managing director for Microsoft IT India, will address the students and their families.
Biyani was once in the crowd of happy graduating students at GC. He graduated in 1992 and went on to professional acclaim and achievements. That’s not unusual for Goshen College graduates.
ACCORDING TO INFORMATION from the college, 94 percent of 2012 graduates who sought employment after earning their degree, were employed within a year. We’re not sure how many graduates landed in their chosen fields, but the employment accomplishment is one to tout.
Goshen College is a Christian institution with a long history. The college staff has always emphasized the Anabaptist religious philosophy, which urges service to others.
The college has also stuck to its long history of offering a liberal arts education and graduates move into all sorts of jobs. Some graduates go on to earn higher degrees at universities and a few put in years more work to have a “Dr.” placed in front of their name in the fields of science, medicine and education.
LIVING SO CLOSE to the college as they do, Goshen-area residents may take the college for granted. We don’t. Often we turn to GC grads for sources for our articles. That’s because many GC alumni are in leadership roles in Goshen and the other nearby cities and towns. We have also witnessed these past few years an increasing number of GC business students moving out into the community to open and build businesses that boost our local economy and provide jobs. These business owners are making a difference now and will help build the Goshen of tomorrow.
If enough time and resources are thrown at the task, we think the actual dollars and cents value of the college to Elkhart County could be determined. But the value goes far beyond turning out bright kids for local jobs.
MANY GC GRADUATES embrace Goshen as a place to stay, marry, raise families and to serve others. You can’t place a price on service to others, but one reason Goshen is known as a caring community is because many Goshen College alumni are living and serving here.
Today the graduates are realizing a dream. Tomorrow another quest will begin. We wish them all a life well lived wherever they choose to land and make a difference.
