Lights, Camera, Commencement

C-SPAN broadcasts Lake Forest College’s 127th graduation.

When Lonnie G. Bunch delivered his commencement address to the Class of 2005 on May 7, they weren’t the only ones who heard his speech.

A national televised audience listened to Bunch, the outgoing president of the Chicago Historical Society and president-elect of the Smithsonian Institution’s new African American History Museum, offer 306 graduates three pieces of advice: to think beyond themselves, to learn to embrace change, and to draw support and solace from others.

C-SPAN broadcasted his speech on June 25 during a weekly series called American Perspectives, which looks at issues of political and cultural interest and features speakers with a wide range of views.

His talk aired between keynotes given by actor Tom Hanks at Vassar College, author Tom Wolfe at Washington & Lee, and author Stephen King at the University of Maine. Other featured speakers on the show included Judith McHale, president of Discovery Communications, at American University and Dana Gioia, chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, at Seton Hall University.

Commencement 2005 photos