Although many members of the senior class said the name Doris Kearns Goodwin did not ring a bell, students, faculty and administrators said they were pleased the Pulitzer Prize-winning author will speak at this year's Commencement.
Goodwin "is a very good choice," President James Freedman said yesterday. "She's an outstanding woman. She's a distinguished historian, and she's a very good speaker."
Goodwin received the Pulitzer Prize in 1995 for "No Ordinary Time: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt: The Home Front in World War II." She has also authored bestsellers "Lyndon Johnson and the American Dream" and "The Fitzgeralds and the Kennedys, An American Saga."
History Professor Margaret Darrow, a member of the Council on Honorary Degrees, the body that selects the Commencement speaker and honorary degree recipients, called Goodwin "just about our premier political biographer at this point."
Darrow said Goodwin, who served as a White House Fellow under former President Lyndon Johnson, would be an "interesting model" for Dartmouth students interested in government.
Biology Professor and member of the Council on Honorary Degrees George Langford said he was pleased a woman would speak at this year's Commencement -- the first since Elizabeth Dole, president of the American Red Cross, addressed the class in 1991.
"We are celebrating 25 years of coeducation," he said. "It is wonderful to have a woman as speaker."
Director of the Women's Resource Center Giavanna Munafo said she was also satisfied with Goodwin's selection as this year's Commencement speaker.
Goodwin has "devoted her life to telling important stories that contribute to understanding our communities and our culture," she said.
Tracy Van Dorpe '98 said Goodwin's lack of notoriety when compared to past speakers, including Bill Clinton, will not affect the quality of her Commencement.
"It's always good to have big names, but I think for me the focus is on the graduates," she said. "If the speaker has a good speech rather than overshadows the graduates that's an important role."
Senior Alex Prinstein also called Goodwin's selection a good choice.
"I'd rather have somebody interesting and able to make a coherent and interesting speech than a big name who is not as articulate," she said.
But Seon Harry '98 said that, although he is satisfied with the council's choice of speaker, Goodwin is not the kind of speaker he was anticipating.
"[I expected] some powerful person on Capital Hill or Wall Street or in state or local government," he said. "The people I admire don't ever seem to get on the list."
Harry said he would prefer to have CEO "Chainsaw Al" Dunlap or New York mayor Rudolph Giuliani as Commencement speakers.
Although Chris Wang '98 said he thought Goodwin would be "an interesting selection because of the variety of things she has done," he said Microsoft CEO Bill Gates, who could speak about "the importance of technology in today's world," may have been a better choice.
Goodwin, who has given addresses at Wellesley College, Bates College, Black Hills State University and Colby College, among other colleges and universities, will address Dartmouth's senior class on June 14. Goodwin and six other honorees will be given honorary degrees at 10 a.m. the morning of Commencement.
