Last week, I was the speaker for the LaPidus Luncheon at the Council of Graduate Schools Annual Meeting in Arizona. I was a last minute replacement for another speaker who could not make it. This the first time I have ever replaced anyone with a 24-hour notice. We speakers are a surprisingly hardy bunch. We almost never miss a lecture but in this case, I found myself on an airplane less than 24 hours after being invited.

What a fantastic group! I spoke for 700 deans and provosts of graduate programs in the US and abroad. That’s right. 700 PhD’s in one room.  They were simply the best audience! No texting, and they got every single joke. From now on, I shall require PhD’s at all my talks.

I also had a chance to talk with the Associate Provost for Graduate Studies at Texas A & M. As some of you know, my father was a Fulbright Scholar there in 1953. That year changed his life. I am living proof that education benefits not just the graduate but future generations as well. Education is simply the best investment any society can make. Have you ever met anyone who regretted having an education?

-Firoozeh