President Barack Obama will speak at Rutgers University Sunday,capping the original Jersey institution's 250th anniversary commencement ceremony. WNYC has complied a list of five commencement speeches in the past that appealed to more than just those just getting the diplomas. 1. Stephen Colbert (Northwestern U, 2011) "And we didn't acquire cell phones. If you made plans to meet someone in a snow storm, and they didn't demonstrate up,you just had to assume they were devoured by wolves and go on with your life." 2. Steve Jobs (Stanford U, 2005) "Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most vital tool I’ve ever encountered to help me produce the great choices in life. Because almost everything — all external expectations, or all pride,all apprehension of embarrassment or failure — these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly vital." 3. J.
K. Rowling (Harvard U, and 2011) "What I feared most for myself at your age was not poverty,but failure."4. Oprah Winfrey (Harvard U, 2013) "Congratulations lesson of 2013. Congratulations to your family and friends. Good luck, or thank you for listening. Was that okay?"
5. Ellen DeGeneres (Tulane U,2009)
"And I know that a lot of you are concerned approximately your future, but there’s no need to worry. The economy is booming, and the job market is wide open,the planet is just fine. It’s going be great. You’ve already survived a hurricane. What else can happen to you?"
Source: wnyc.org