May 28 is a special day for our family. It’s Dad‘s birthday. He would have been 92 this year. And oh, how he would have loved to have been in Terre Haute, Indiana, on that day.

… because May 28 this year was also the day James graduated from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, with a double major (Electrical Engineering and Math) plus a Master’s degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering.

But for Dad it would have been even more than degrees and the chance to be with family on a beautiful day.

It would have been … the bagpipes.

Dad absolutely loved bagpipes music. (He actually weaponized them by playing his bagpipes record at full volume when his children slept in on a Saturday morning long ago. But that’s another story …)

The “Rose” in Rose-Hulman is Chauncey Rose. Born in Wethersfield, Connecticut, to Scottish-immigrant parents, Chauncey did quite well for himself by moving to Parke County, Indiana, in 1819 and investing in milling, real estate, and eventually, the growing railway system.

Two years before his death, Chauncey contributed money to build and endow what was first called Rose Polytechnic Institute and is now Rose-Hulman.

The school opened in 1883 with 48 students, only half of whom would survive the rigorous studies to graduate.

In honor of Chauncey Rose’s heritage, the incoming class of freshmen is led “up the hill” each fall by a kilt-clad band of bagpipes-playing musicians. And four years later, those bagpipes lead the senior class back down the hill to graduation.

We landed a good spot, halfway down the hill:

Even though my DNA test says I’m only four percent Scottish (meaning James would be two percent) there’s a proud heritage there.

That includes his choice of roommate and, eventually, suitemate: Duncan McKee.

Duncan doesn’t talk with a brogue or wear a kilt (plus he’s from Seattle), but still … “he’s the best roommate you could ask for.”

One Week Earlier

A week before graduation, Gary and I made the drive to Terre Haute for the school’s 2022 Honors & Awards Ceremony.

I’m so glad to have hit the correct button on my phone to record this portion, as the Head of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Mario Simoni, used a phrase that nearly melted my heart:

“James always exhibits humble brilliance with a selfless and caring attitude.”

My mother, the poet, would have loved that phrase: “Humble brilliance.”

“… without being an officer or asking for anything in return. Even when working in difficult team situations, faced with dismissiveness or rudeness from other team members, James exhibited leadership – with empathy and patience at every turn.”

When I asked James what surprised him the most about his four years of college, I guess the answer shouldn’t have surprised me: Food.

Our youngest has developed quite a palette by visiting Terre Haute’s hottest restaurants. (Yes, he loves spicy food.) Sorry, dorm food is still dorm food.

He’s delved into Indian food, Thai cuisine, and learned early on to ask for the Diablo Sauce available only by request at Chavas Mexican Grill. “It got so, they recognized me and reached under the counter for the Diablo Sauce without me asking.”

When they visited the Taj Mahal restaurant James got a kick out of hearing classmates order their meals in Hindi so as to ask for even higher levels of spice than what was listed on the menu.

Not all classes were engineering and math

The curriculum for humanity classes was fascinating. Three favorites:

• Music of the Global South (covering southern regions outside of America and Western Europe). James particularly appreciated learning about music from around the world and oral traditions of teaching and handing down music in some regions, rather than using sheet music.
• Banned in the USA. Two favorites were The Kite Runner and The Bluest Eye.
• Baroque, Romantic & Classical Music. Considering that he inherited a large collection of classical music albums and CDs from my parents, this was an excellent course to take.

Another favorite class was a mixture of electronics and music – just perfect for James.

This is his final project for the class, titled “Farewell, B200″:

This isn’t B200, but it’s another of James’s favorite places to hang out:

Dorm life

Apparently they don’t call them dorms at Rose-Hulman, but “residence halls” misses that certain je ne sais quoi …

James lived in dorms (except when he was studying from home during the worst of the pandemic) and was an SRT the past two years. SRT stands for Sophomore Residence Tutor and means he lived on a sophomore floor and held regular (and sometimes irregular) tutoring sessions for students needing a bit of help – both individually and in groups. James discovered he likes to teach and also became more at ease with public speaking.

He also found a great friendship with a fellow SRT named Joanna, who graduated in 2021.

The social media folks at Rose-Hulman have done an admirable job of not including James in any of their posts these four years. I say that without sarcasm, as James is not one to jump in front of a camera.

But, with literally only seconds to spare, they got him! (See 1:34 if you don’t care to watch the full video.)

After the ceremony, where “persistence” was a keyword for the last class to graduate with pre-Covid college memories, we strolled around campus and took some pictures. James surprised me with a suggestion to update this photo:

The above is James, moments after deciding between Rose-Hulman and Purdue the fall of his senior year in high school. He’s standing in front of an entrance to Chauncey’s Restaurant on campus.

And here he is, his final day on campus.

James reminisced the other day that his best take-away from Rose-Hulman was the opportunity to solve challenging questions (several times, the class was assigned problems that the professors admitted to not yet having conquered) and working with brilliant minds.

As the cap and gown are tucked away and James prepares for a move to Dayton to start his career in electrical engineering, Gary and I cherish each moment with our youngest.

As James packs his belongings for the move 3.5 hours away, I’m hoping he’ll run across a record album from his grandfather’s prized collection. The one with the bagpipes music, designed to be played good and loud.

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