Graduates 'add to proud heritage'

They swept down a sunny Broadway Avenue to a fanfare of brass and balloons, and now 400 Massey University graduates are off to embark on their own journeys.

As a summer breeze blew through The Square yesterday, town crier Caroline Robinson heralded two separate processions of Massey students through the streets of Palmerston North to receive their degrees and diplomas.

Fitting the formality of the occasion, Chancellor Russell Ballard's words to new graduates were as austere as his handshake.

"I challenge you to go forward as Massey alumni, to make your own contribution, to grow your own reputation and in doing so, add to the proud heritage that you're now part of.

"Congratulations, work hard, go enjoy yourselves."

Royal Society of New Zealand education vice-president and former Cabinet minister Margaret Austin extolled the virtues of New Zealand graduates in the morning ceremony.

"We listen, analyse, and contribute. We have a go, and we are adventurous. It doesn't matter where you go in the world ... you will see Kiwis responding to the challenges of the day."

The daughter of a railroad worker, Mrs Austin attended the University of Canterbury before becoming a school teacher and moving into education governance. She was elected to Parliament in 1984 as a Labour representative, before becoming Chancellor of Lincoln University.

She wouldn't have been able to achieve any of that without the New Zealand education system, she said.

"No-one, least of all myself, would have predicted the wealth of experience I have had.

"Never forget your roots. You can walk the corridors of power, engage in diplomacy, contribute to the highest levels of academia ... you may become a great writer or poet, a philosopher or entertainer but your roots are of extreme importance."

Graduates should aim for success, and stick at it to find happiness, she said.

"In the autumn years of my life, I'm content. We all have a destiny in life – find it, nurture it, and give it your all."

- © Fairfax NZ News