Well, good morning. It’s such an honor to be with all of you and with all of your students. Thank you for being an inspiration to all of us every day. And we’re all so thrilled to be here and celebrate with you and your families and friends, and talk about all that you accomplish in your days ahead.
Last night, we were sitting back at our ranch, Brian and Booker and I. Booker is our son and my husband, Brian, is here as well. We had just completed having my granddaughter’s first birthday party. And we had had a lot of people at the place, they were riding cars, and four-wheelers, and petting horses, and eating cake, and celebrating her. And we had just got done cleaning up at about 9:30 at night, and sat down, and started talking about coming here today, and the speech that I would give to all of you.
And Booker, who’s 22 years old, he said, “Well, Mom, what’re you gonna say?” ‘Cause he said, “I hate it when people give speeches and it sounds like somebody else wrote them for you.” And I said, “Yes, I know. Me too.” He said, “So don’t give a speech like that. Just give one on what you really feel all of these students might want to hear.” And I said, “Well, Booker, what do you think that is?” And he said, “Why don’t you tell them the things that you wish you had known at their age. Or things that you wish you would’ve known when you finished your college degree.”
Well, that gets a little complicated for me because I didn’t finish my college degree until I’d been out of high school for probably 15-16 years. Took me a long time, I was a nontraditional student. We had a tragedy in our family when I was going to college, and I came back home to farm and ranch with my family. So, going back to school many years later I didn’t complete it until I was already a mom of three and working full-time. But I did think there was probably five things that I wanted to leave you all with a thought of today. Of things that I do wish I would’ve known when I was younger.
First of all, the first thing I would want you to know is that you are unique. And that you are special. The world needs what you have to offer and is desperate for it today. You know, this school is a special little place in the United States of America. Things happen here that can’t happen anywhere else. You are one of only ten universities in the entire country that have certifications in cyber research and cyber ops, cyber defense, and you’re certified from the National Security Administration and the Department of Homeland Security. There’s very few places in the country that have that certification in place. You are even the first school in the country to create a PhD program in cyber operations. You’ve partnered with U.S. Army Cyber Command, and you’re giving students a classified-level experience.
Now, as someone who, when I was sworn in as governor, was told, the most threatening thing against our state was the fact that all of our computer programs were on old systems. That we were extremely vulnerable to hacking attempts and our systems could all go down. We had thousands and thousands of people’s personal information on our systems, and it was on a fifty-year-old server that was not secure and wasn’t protecting information. I also didn’t have a skiff in which to go and get a classified briefing, and Dakota State University is fulfilling both of those needs, not just for you and for your students and the background and education it’s giving you, but it’s fulfilling that need for South Dakota and for the United States of America. You are training the very best of the best here.
You also have been inspirational in the Teacher Apprenticeship Program, the way that you’ve wrapped your arms around teaching our children and the next generation. In fact, I think we have several of those apprentices today that are graduating, and I want to thank Dr. Graves for his leadership in implementing that program. Anybody can get a college degree in South Dakota that wants to continue on to inspire others in the next generation.
Your degrees in business, and health, and economics, and what you offer here to folks here at this university is very special. There’s very few universities in the country that do it that well. And, you are the only university in the United States of America to send four different students to represent Team USA at the World Cyber Games. So, everything you do is outstanding, everything you do is incredible. And what you have to offer the world as an individual will be incredibly impactful and special and be utilized far into the future.
The second thing that I want to tell you, that ties into that first, you are unique and the world needs you, is to take your emergency brake off. I don’t know how many of you have ever been out driving a vehicle before, you’ve wondered what’s wrong with it, right? It’s jerky, it doesn’t turn right, it’s going slow, it seems like something is broke, and then you look down and you have your emergency brake on. Anybody ever do that before? I have.
You drive around and then once you pull the emergency brake off, you’re amazed at how well your car drives. It drives smooth, and it’s amazing, you’re like, “I can’t believe I was actually doing that.” Well, I’m going to encourage you that as you go out and tackle the next big thing in your life to take your emergency brakes off. There’s little things in our lives, little insecurities, little things that we’re unsure of, maybe something that’s scary like moving across the country, taking a new position, that is your emergency brake that’s holding you back. You still will move forward, but it might be tougher if you don’t let it go.
I’m going to encourage you that as you identify your gifts and talents that are unique to you and what you have to offer, to just let the insecurities go. Just let them be released and go forward and believe in who you are and what you have to offer, and that you have a unique gift to give and to contribute to the world. I had somebody tell me, many, many years ago, that when I—if you don’t know this, I’m a bit of an introvert. I love people, and I love spending time with people, but to walk into a crowded room where there’s a lot of people socializing and visiting, it’s hard for me. I still have to go in there and try to find a few people that I can greet and meet and have conversations with, but somebody said to me, years and years ago, when I was a young mom, they said, “You believed in Santa Claus for many years, at least believe in yourself for five minutes.” I want you to leave here today recognizing that you can believe in yourself and what you have to accomplish.
A great writer and a statesman once wrote that, “Dream no small dreams, for they have no power to move the hearts of men.” So, go forward and dream big dreams, do big things, let your insecurities go, and offer your unique gift.
The third thing that I wanted to tell you was to stop being in such a hurry. I remember getting out of school, and running businesses, raising kids, and being in a hurry all the time. So much so that I missed opportunities to spend time with people. I missed opportunities to go to events and to be there for family events. And many times, you’re so busy getting that house purchased, getting that first big job that you want, that you forget you don’t have to be in such a hurry all the time.
Which ties into my number four, and that is relationships. You will have people tell you throughout your life that it’s incredibly important the education that you have. Yes, your education is very important. Some people will try to define you by your job, by what you do. And yes, that’s important. It’s important that you get up every single day and have a purpose and live a life of significance.
But I will tell you that the world still revolves on relationships. People will be successful based on the people that they know and the people that they spend time with. When people ask you to do things, say yes to them and go to them. You might meet somebody there that becomes your next mentor, becomes your next business partner, becomes somebody that’s your next best friend. While education and jobs and all those other things are important to you, it is relationships that will help you be successful in life.
The fifth thing that I’d like to say to you is to remember to say thank you. You have so many people in your life that have helped you be where you are today. So many people that have given you an opportunity to use the skillset that you have, so many people have sacrificed so that you can have an opportunity, maybe even people that just encouraged you. As you go out and thank people, be happy. This world is desperate for people of joy and hope and people who spend time together, love each other, and recognize that we need to say thank you much, much more often.
I’m so excited for all of you today. Thank you for letting me be here and share this special moment with all of you. Remember that somewhere, God wants you to do good. Something He has that He wants you to do. And there is someone out there that He wants you to help. May God bless you; may God continue to bless the great state of South Dakota and the United States of America. Congratulations.
Neither the Catt Center nor Iowa State University is affiliated with any individual in the Archives or any political party. Inclusion in the Archives is not an endorsement by the center or the university.