National Collegiate Athletic Association, May 19, 2011
I was watching one of our all-conference basketball players at the top of his game recently. He played amazingly well. I listened as closely as I watched because it was Chopin he was playing. The Nocturnes, I think.
Bob Dylan always goes with me to Italy.
This summer took Mary and me on a magic carpet ride to Istanbul for a few days. Yes, we did buy a carpet while we were there, despite our resolution beforehand that one thing we definitely would not do was buy a carpet. Well, we did. But we got a lot more from this trip: a sense of the complex the interweaving of historical forces that make everything look slightly different.
It’s winter again. The days grow short, the light more faint, clouds gather, and darkness comes in like a rising tide. It rains.
One summer evening in the early 1930s, as the story goes, William Faulkner sat on his porch in rural Mississippi with his wife, Estelle. She remarked upon the special quality of light that appeared there every August. Faulkner, struck by Estelle's observation, immediately ran to his study, where he had been working on a manuscript.
It is good to be starting in year two. As the members of the Class of 2007, I am about to begin my second year at Puget Sound; and there is a lot to envy about those sophomores. With a foundation of lessons learned, they now continue their adventure of exploring the world of ideas, deciding on a major course of study, thinking through options for studying abroad, joining a music group or club, developing relationships with friends and faculty, focusing on a sport or an internship, and beginning to navigate a career path. It is their time to build the structure of their future.
By Ronald R. Thomas
Seattle Times Editorial
Thursday, September 14, 2006
It's September and time to go back to school for many Americans. But not for others. The likelihood of a student of color completing college in most states is about half of what it is for whites. In some states, the odds are twice as bad. Clearly, in the race for education, too many of us are caught behind the color line.
In May, President Thomas announced that he would be ending his term of service to the university at the close of the 2015–16 academic year. In this essay, he explains why.
“It’s time.”
When I am asked what made me decide to make next year my final year as Puget Sound’s 13th president, I usually end my explanation with that phrase. “It’s time.”
The Olympian, January 29, 2011
Ronald R. Thomas, guest columnist
The most important step in any journey is the first one. In our quest to find adequate higher education funding for our state, we have started the search by running pretty fast in the wrong direction.
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