{"id":680,"date":"2008-05-12T16:22:28","date_gmt":"2008-05-12T21:22:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ezing.me\/transfer\/?p=680"},"modified":"2014-09-23T09:24:32","modified_gmt":"2014-09-23T14:24:32","slug":"commmcement08speech","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/commmcement08speech\/","title":{"rendered":"Fox News Anchor Shepard Smith Challenges Graduates to Be Ready for ’10 Seconds Later’"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n<\/p>\n
\nWatch video of Shepard Smith’s commencement speech.\n<\/div>\n

<\/embed><\/div>\n

OXFORD, Miss. – Dramatic change often comes swiftly – in as
\nlittle as 10 seconds – and how people react to such
\nsituations determines their success and legacy, Fox News
\nChannel anchor Shepard Smith told University of Mississippi
\ngraduates Saturday morning in the Grove.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\n“There will be moments for which you cannot prepare, but
\nmoments for which you must be ready,” said Smith, speaking
\nat the university’s 155th commencement. “When they come,
\nyou’ll have a choice: you can be beaten back, you can be
\nfrightened or you can rise to meet those moments.”
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\nThis year’s graduating class included 2,148 candidates for
\ndegrees. Several thousand graduates and family members
\nobserved the speeches and academic pageantry on a breezy,
\novercast morning.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\nFollowing the general ceremony, the College of Liberal Arts
\nand seven schools held separate ceremonies across campus to
\npresent baccalaureate, master’s, doctor of pharmacy and law
\ndiplomas. Activities originally planned for the afternoon
\nwere moved closer to noon because thunderstorms were
\nforecast for later in the day. Recipients of doctor of
\nphilosophy degrees were honored at a hooding ceremony
\nFriday evening in the Ford Center for the Performing Arts.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\nSmith, a native of Holly Springs, is the country’s
\ntop-rated cable news anchor. The Ole Miss alumnus anchors
\nthe network’s signature “The Fox Report” evening newscast
\nand afternoon news-interview program “Studio B.” He has won
\nacclaim for his reporting, particularly his live coverage
\nof Hurricane Katrina’s aftermath in south Mississippi and
\nNew Orleans.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

\n\"shep?wide.jpg\"<\/p>\n
\nShepard Smith speaks to the class of ’08 in the Grove. UM photo by Robert Jordan\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

In March, he broadcast live from the Oxford Square for two
\ndays as part of the network’s coverage of the Mississippi
\nprimaries. He plans to return in September to cover the
\nfirst presidential debate of 2008, to be broadcast live
\nfrom the Ford Center for the Performing Arts.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\nIn a speech punctuated with rah-rah enthusiasm for Ole Miss
\nand his home state, Smith acknowledged that he left the
\nuniversity a few credit hours short of graduation, but
\ncredited the “push this amazing place gave me” for his
\nsuccess.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n“I’ve watched the sun rise over the deck of an aircraft
\ncarrier in the Persian Gulf,” he said. “I’ve spoken with
\npresidents and interviewed kings. I’ve gotten up in
\nSantorini and Split, and bedded down in Dubai and Dubrovnik
\nand Amman and Amsterdam. But when I have a moment to
\nbreathe, when I have time to rest and relax and reflect, I
\nwant to be here.”
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n Although he has often been asked to give commencement
\nspeeches, Smith said he had always declined because he
\nwanted to deliver his first at his alma mater.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\nQuoting Mississippi authors William Faulkner and Eudora
\nWelty, he urged graduates to strive for success even when
\nfailure seems likely. He also warned of unforeseen
\ncircumstances.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n“On a normal day, 10 seconds later, a loved one can drop to
\na knee and say those words you so wanted to hear, but now
\nyou can’t believe it’s happening,” he said. “On a normal
\nday, 10 seconds later, the phone can ring and that job is
\nthere halfway across the country. Ten seconds later, Tyree
\ncan can catch a pass between his hand and his helmet – the
\ngreat escape can happen, and our guy can be the Super Bowl
\nMVP.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n“On a normal day, with a perfect blue sky on a beautiful
\nSeptember morning, 10 seconds later, you look up and the
\nbiggest building you’ve ever been in is on fire. And
\nthere’s about to be a new normal.”
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\nSmith cited two examples of national stories in which
\nordinary people performed acts of heroism: Hurricane
\nKatrina and its aftermath, and last year’s collapse of the
\nInterstate 35 bridge over the Mississippi River in
\nMinneapolis. He painted a vivid picture of the latter
\nevent.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n“In the midst of it all, a yellow school bus sat perched on
\na section of that broken bridge,” he recalled. “Inside were
\n52 little boys and girls. They were just coming back from a
\nday at the water park and ‘all of a sudden.’ They were all
\n5 or 6 years old. As flames burned on that span still
\nshifting, and as twisted metal and shattered concrete
\ngroaned in protest, heroes emerged.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n“Ordinary men and women came out of the smoke and ran into
\nthe fire because there were little boys and girls on that
\nbus. On that day, 13 people died on that bridge But every
\nsingle child on that bus went home.”
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\nCharging graduates to be the “guardians of good,” Smith
\nwished them luck.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n“Ten seconds later has just arrived,” he said. “And you are
\nready.”
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\nDuring the ceremony, Gregory Schirmer, professor of
\nEnglish, was honored as recipient of the 2008 Elsie M. Hood
\nOutstanding Teacher Award, presented annually to the
\ncampuswide outstanding teacher.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\nSam Shu-Wi Wang, professor of mechanical engineering and
\ndirector of the National Center for Computational
\nHydroscience and Engineering, received the university’s
\ninaugural Distinguished Research and Creative Achievement
\nAward.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\nThe university also recognized the winners of this year’s
\nFrist Student Service Awards: Aileen Ajootian, chair and
\nassociate professor of classics and art, and Marc
\nShowalter, director of the University Counseling Center and
\nassistant professor of education.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Watch video of Shepard Smith’s commencement speech. OXFORD, Miss. – Dramatic change often comes swiftly – in as little as 10 seconds – and how people react to such situations determines their success and legacy, Fox News Channel anchor Shepard Smith told University of Mississippi graduates Saturday morning in the Grove. “There will be momentsRead the story …<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[765,767],"tags":[245,247,248],"yoast_head":"\nFox News Anchor Shepard Smith Challenges Graduates to Be Ready for '10 Seconds Later' - Ole Miss News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"http:\/\/news.olemiss.edu\/commmcement08speech\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Fox News Anchor Shepard Smith Challenges Graduates to Be Ready for '10 Seconds Later' - Ole Miss News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Watch video of Shepard Smith’s commencement speech. OXFORD, Miss. – Dramatic change often comes swiftly – in as little as 10 seconds – and how people react to such situations determines their success and legacy, Fox News Channel anchor Shepard Smith told University of Mississippi graduates Saturday morning in the Grove. “There will be momentsRead the story …\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"http:\/\/news.olemiss.edu\/commmcement08speech\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Ole Miss News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"-0001-11-30T00:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2014-09-23T14:24:32+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/ezing.me\/transfer\/wp-content\/uploads\/stories\/05-2008\/shep?wide.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@OleMissRebels\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@OleMissRebels\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/\",\"name\":\"Ole Miss News\",\"description\":\"The official source for University of Mississippi news\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":\"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/?s={search_term_string}\",\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/news.olemiss.edu\/commmcement08speech\/#primaryimage\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/ezing.me\/transfer\/wp-content\/uploads\/stories\/05-2008\/shep?wide.jpg\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/news.olemiss.edu\/commmcement08speech\/#webpage\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/news.olemiss.edu\/commmcement08speech\/\",\"name\":\"Fox News Anchor Shepard Smith Challenges Graduates to Be Ready for '10 Seconds Later' - Ole Miss News\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/news.olemiss.edu\/commmcement08speech\/#primaryimage\"},\"datePublished\":\"-0001-11-30T00:00:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2014-09-23T14:24:32+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/#\/schema\/person\/4515cb1b4f8a759552c0827c3df56430\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"http:\/\/news.olemiss.edu\/commmcement08speech\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/#\/schema\/person\/4515cb1b4f8a759552c0827c3df56430\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/#personlogo\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/0.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3e8e7562bf6d779d771ad8ce4cecd7ef?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/680"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=680"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/680\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":42738,"href":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/680\/revisions\/42738"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=680"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=680"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=680"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}