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Katie Couric Receives Honorary Doctor of Science;
Gives Commencement Speech at Case Western
Posted: May 17, 2010
As part of the 2010 Case Western Reserve commencement ceremony, CBS Evening News anchor and managing editor Katie Couric received a special recognition from the university. Case Western Reserve President Barbara R. Snyder presented Couric with an Honorary Doctor of Science degree. Couric followed with a commencement address to more than 1,700 members of Case Western Reserve University's Class of 2010.
Couric provided practical advice to the graduates, noting that it is "not exactly a news flash" that the job outlook is still less than optimal. "The good news is you're graduating from a truly outstanding institution and are well equipped to face the world." For those still looking for career opportunities, Couric told them to have business cards ready to hand out to potential contacts, and to set up a professional email account and answering machine message.
Couric stressed the importance of networking and having the "chutzpah you need to do something that impresses." She shared the story of her first major break in television news, where she talked her way into meeting an executive producer by explaining how their family members knew each other. Although he was flummoxed by her bold move, the producer moved her resume to the top of the pile.
"I'm not a subscriber to the helicopter parent refrain of 'honey, you can do whatever you want to do.' I really don't think you can. You have to take a good, hard look at your strengths, your weaknesses, your skills and your shortcomings. But most of all, your passions," Couric said. Although hard work and perseverance might bring material success, those traits "won't bring you a life that is truly rich," she explained. "For that, you have to believe in a higher purpose."
Couric found her higher purpose when her late husband, Jay Monahan, died of colon cancer in 1998. Monahan's battle inspired Couric to use her position in broadcast news to help spare others the loss that her family had suffered. With her March 2000 on-air colonoscopy, she helped to demystify this screening procedure. The result was a scientifically documented increase in colonoscopies nationwide, dubbed the Couric Effect by Michigan researchers.
Couric co-founded the Entertainment Industry Foundation's National Colorectal Cancer Research Alliance in 2000, helped to establish The Jay Monahan Center for Gastrointestinal Health at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center in 2004, and co-founded Stand Up To Cancer in 2008.
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