The College of Liberal arts awarded about 474 bachelors' and graduate-level degrees to new Auburn alumni at its commencement ceremony Monday morning.
Students and their families and friends gathered at the Auburn Arena as the students received their degrees and honors.
Commencement speaker Mark Winne, an Auburn
He gave the new graduates seven tips: Appreciate the people in your life who make a difference, don't rely on cell phones to communicate, forgive people, have courage, believe in miracles, don't let the haters get you down and all things work together.
When picking their profession, Winne asked students to keep in mind what really matters.
"I want you to ask yourself why, why am I going to do it," Winne said. "The right answer does not involve overuse of the first-person pronoun. I've seen people in my business and others motivated by ego."
The ego is not going to do it, Winne said, and still, there are others who are motivated by the money.
"At the end of the day, money isn't the answer," he said. "I've seen people who got lots of it, legally and illegally. Sometimes it only buys bigger problems."
"If you want real satisfaction, it's got to be because you used the gifts God gave you in your particular combination to help other people," Winne said.
Winne was still a student at Auburn when he began a part-time job at The Birmingham News. While on assignment, he and a photographer spotted a hand sticking out of the trunk of a car. They chased it across the city, ultimately leading to the rescue of a kidnapping victim.
After more than three years at The Birmingham News, Winne was hired by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, later switching to television at WSB-TV in 1986.
"Often I meet people at the times of greatest drama or sometimes trauma in their lives," Winne said. "The job might take me from the front row to the back row to death row, from the courthouse to the crack house."
Auburn President Jay Gogue, who has now overseen his last undergraduate commencement ceremony, commended students for their hard work.
"To our graduates, we are extremely proud of you," Gogue said. "We value your determination, your sacrifice, your discipline, your intelligence and your very special spirit."
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Chip Brownlee, senior in journalism and political science, is the editor-in-chief of The Auburn Plainsman.
