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Don Hodel |
Saturday, May 25, 2002 was an historic day for Patrick Henry College as we celebrated our first graduation. Fourteen graduates received their diplomas, and Don Hodel, a former Reagan cabinet official, delivered an inspiring commencement address on our campus.
Our first graduates are true pioneers, and they represent an important milestone at Patrick Henry College of what God has done and is doing through this institution. As much as any faculty member or administrator, they have left their mark on the College. They have been integral to shaping and forming the PHC educational experience and will be a lasting testimony to the world.
Since each graduate majored in Government (the first Classical Liberal Arts majors will graduate May 2003), the College’s choice of Don Hodel as commencement speaker could not have been more appropriate.
After a successful career in both the public and private sectors, Don Hodel served for eight years in the Reagan Administration, as Secretary of the Department of the Interior and Secretary of the Department of Energy. In January 1989, he was awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal by President Reagan.
Upon leaving the cabinet in 1989, Mr. Hodel and his wife, Barbara, moved to Summit County, Colorado, where they formed an energy and natural resources consulting firm. They continue their consulting work today while sitting on the boards of various businesses and charitable organizations. In particular, we are blessed to have Mrs. Hodel serve as a Trustee of Patrick Henry College.
In his commencement address, Mr. Hodel challenged our graduates to keep the right focus, telling them that, “Our concern should be success in God's terms, whether or not we are successful in human terms … Success is faithfulness, our faithfulness to God's calling on our lives, whether your service is to the larger society or to your family...Remember those values and precepts which have been reinforced and buttressed by your time at PHC…And while we are not called to be successful in human terms, with what you have learned at PHC and the encouragement you have received, you have great prospects for success in human terms.”
Just two years after opening its doors, Patrick Henry College is fulfilling the mission of training those who will lead our nation and shape our culture. Our graduates are headed for law school, graduate school, further study abroad, and careers in public service. We praise God for all that He has done at PHC, and we thank the thousands of families across the country who have partnered with us both prayerfully and financially.
