Tenley Albright Tells Springfield College Grads ‘Try To Do Things Whether You Know That You Can Do Them Or Not’

Dr. Tenley E. Albright, Boston surgeon and winner of the 1956 Olympic gold medal in figure skating

SPRINGFIELD, Mass., May 17, 2008 -- “Go ahead and try things, whether you know that you can do them or not. Remember, as you build your stories through your experiences, that the sweet is sweeter for the bitter, even though it may not be until we get to that sweeter side to appreciate that. Go for it with the knowledge that you are prepared. And, embrace your future knowing: yes, you can; yes, you can; yes, you can,” Dr. Tenley E. Albright told graduates of Springfield College’s advanced degree programs this morning, at the college’s 122 nd commencement, on Naismith Green, on the Springfield, Mass. campus.

Albright, Harvard-educated surgeon and blood plasma researcher, won the Olympic gold medal in figure skating in 1956 after surviving polio. She has been an advocate for advancements in the field of medicine, physical fitness, physical education, polio eradication, and the U.S. Olympic movement. In 1995, Springfield College awarded her an honorary doctor of humanics degree.

In today’s ceremonies, the college awarded 436 master’s degrees, three certificates of advanced graduate study, and one doctoral degree. Tomorrow, the college will award 686 bachelor’s degrees in ceremonies at the MassMutual Center, in Springfield, Mass. Stuart H. Reese, chairman, president and chief executive officer of MassMutual, will give commencement address. He will receive an honorary doctor of humanics degree, as will Rev. Leo James Hoar, the college’s associate Catholic chaplain, who has served the college since 1984.

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