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Thank you McConnell Program. Thank you for encouraging me to still read books worth reading and not just textbooks. I can confidently say that I would have never read Plato’s Republic had it not been for the Center. I can just as confidently say that my life is richer for it.
When I was in elementary school there was nothing I despised more than the Nightly News. My parents would put it on every day. It was so incredibly boring, and it never made any sense. Watching local and national leaders on television seemed like an elaborate game of political mad libs. Things were seemingly random and therefore unpredictable, intimidating, and to be avoided. Eventually (and thankfully) this hatred turned into a curiosity, a curiosity that inspired me to apply for this program.
Starting college, I was planning on spending 4 years solving integrals and writing for-loops. Thanks to the McConnell Program I also spent those 4 years learning about religion and politics, and Middle Eastern affairs. All of these classes, seminars, and books taught me just how much I don’t know. At the same time, the program pulled back the curtain just enough to allow me to make a little more sense out of an apparently nonsensical world. Even more, interacting with local and national leaders face to face allowed me to see the human side of a seemingly cold and transactional field.
Reflecting on my years, I am happy to report that I now voluntarily turn on the Nightly News, though the Imperial March-esque theme still makes me shiver. Plato’s Republic is now proudly resting on my bookshelf and the education I leave with has surpassed anything I could have expected from any engineering school in the nation. Dr. Gregg may call them keys and dolphins may call them fish, as I get ready to graduate and bid farewell to the Center, I want to express my sincere gratitude for everything that was offered to me. Your impact has been more than I can ever adequately express. Thank you.
Kieran Waigel is a McConnel Scholar in the class of 2022. He is studying computer engineering, computer science, and political science at the University of Louisville.