New students will encounter people and ideas that differ from prior experiences, including viewpoints that cause disagreement, discomfort, or offense. Students should learn from those who think and speak differently, listen carefully, speak respectfully, and form opinions thoughtfully. Keeping an open mind and engaging with diverse ideas and people enables deeper understanding of complex issues and fosters greater capability and maturity. Students should assemble an intellectual toolbox for evaluating evidence, contextualizing problems, and participating in civil discourse to understand challenging viewpoints. Intellectual growth depends on a community that cherishes freedoms and responsibilities of open inquiry and rejects shutting down other voices. Diversity makes the community stronger, richer, and more capable.
"Some of them you'll disagree with. Some of them will make you uncomfortable. Some of them might offend you," President Michael I. Kotlikoff told the nearly 4,800 first-year and transfer students and family members gathered Aug. 19 at Schoellkopf Field for New Student Convocation. "My suggestion - if you want to get the most out of your time here - is to learn from the people who don't think and speak like you, as well as the people who do."
Kotlikoff advised the students to listen carefully, speak their minds respectfully and form their own opinions thoughtfully. "The more you keep your mind open, the more you engage with different ideas and different people, the better you'll be able to understand the world and all its complexities," he said. "And the more capable and mature your mind will be when you leave here."
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