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Continue to Stretch to Achieve Dean Tells Business School Graduates

June 2007

STANFORD GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS—Stanford Graduate School of Business Dean Robert Joss urged this year's graduates to go beyond "all dimensions of your life," while remaining connected to their academic roots and their community.

"Stretch yourself," Joss said at the June 16 graduation ceremony. "Each of you has so much potential. We've tried hard to stretch you while you were here. It's a funny thing. We have graduates all over the world, and to the best of our knowledge, no one has ever come back and said, 'You pushed me too hard.' Don't leave it to others. Don't leave it to chance. Stretch yourself in all dimensions of your life-on the job, as a partner, spouse, parent, child, as a friend, as a community member."

Joss and other faculty members honored 461 graduates who were joined by family and friends on a warm, sunny afternoon at the Frost Amphitheater.

The Business School conferred 380 Master of Business Administration degrees, 8 of them are joint degrees with Stanford's School of Law and 20 of them with Stanford School of Education. In addition, 22 students received doctorates, 2 received a Master of Arts in Business Research degree, and 57 graduates of the Stanford Sloan Master's Program received the Master of Science in Management degree.

MBA graduate John Foong received this year's Ernest C. Arbuckle Award, which was presented by Susan Arbuckle, the youngest daughter of the School's third dean. Foong was chosen to receive the honor by his fellow students who, together with his professors, praised his enthusiasm and energy.

Kermit Cook was this year's Henry Ford II Scholar recognizing the student with the best academic record. Cook was also one of 38 MBA students designated as Arjay Miller Scholars, representing the top 10 percent of the class based on academic performance. The designation was named after the respected and beloved fourth dean of the School.

As a Henry Ford II scholar, Cook received a cash reward and will have his name engraved on a permanent plaque.

Ryan Cotton was named as this year's Alexander A. Robichek Student Achievement Award in Finance. Established in 1978, the award honors the MBA student who was selected by the finance faculty for achievement in finance courses. It recognizes Professor Robichek's outstanding contribution to the teaching of finance at the Business School from 1960 until his death in 1978.

Senior Associate Dean John Roberts, the John H. Scully Professor of Economics, Strategic Management, and International Business, recognized 63 students in the Sloan and MBA programs who also received certificates in Global Management. Created 13 years ago, the School's Global Management Program aims to help students prepare for management careers in a global economy and to highlight the School's emphasis on international business.

James Patell, the Herbert Hoover Professor of Public and Private Management and codirector of the Alliance for Innovative Manufacturing at Stanford, recognized 84 MBA students who also received certificates in Public Management.

The School's Public Management Program, which began in 1971 under the leadership of Dean Emeritus Arjay Miller, underscores the School's emphasis on management issues in government and the nonprofit sector.

In his remarks, Dean Joss also encouraged the graduates to become immersed in their communities and to measure their individual successes in terms of how much they are able to give back.

"Resolve to make giving and community building an important part of your lives," he said. "We are only as strong as the communities in which we live and work. If others don't succeed, you can't either. You can't do it alone. It is said that 'much is expected from those to whom much has been given.'" This is a group that has been given a lot. So make giving back a part of your lives. Give of your time, your self, and your financial resources. Give because you're blessed, because you can, and because you must if you are to build a meaning into your life that can only come from supporting things greater than yourself."

—Ben Pimentel