و أقولوا في القرآن ما جاءت به آياته فهو الكريم المنزالو و أقولوا قال الله جل جلالوه والمصطف الهادي و لأتأوالو أسأل، أنا مرحباً مسلم، ويأتي في بعض الفيديو، هل يمكنك إعادة على أن تبقى أمامي على الناس؟ الحمد لله رب العالمين، له الحمد الحسن، والثناء الجميل، وأشدوا لا إله إلا الله وحده لا شريك له يقول الحق وهو يهدي السبيل، وأشدوا أن محمداً عبده ورسوله صلى الله عليه وعلى آله وأصحابه والتابعين لهم بحسان إلى يوم الدين أما بعد دعوا أن تكون ذلك الشيء التي ترجم لك ويأتي لك always make sure that you understand the Quran and the Sunnah in the way that the early pious predecessors understood it أبو بكر، عمر، رثمان، علي، صحابة ورسول الله، the companions of the Prophet ﷺ فمن بعدهم and those who came after them in virtue في كل موادات من the religion جميع أبواب الدين، everything in the religion make sure that you understand it in the way that they understood it make sure that you follow them in the tawheed that they came with the oneness of Allah سبحانه وتعالى and the way that they understood it make sure that you understand and you learn the Sunnah the way that they implemented it the way that they learnt it the way that they upheld it the third one is make sure that you follow them in the obedience the ta'a that they came with الله سبحانه وتعالى he says in the Quran ذاركم وصاقكم به لعلكم تتقول الله سبحانه وتعالى says this is my path the straight path وأن هذا سراطي مستقيما فتبعوا this is my path follow it ولا تتبعوا السبولة do not follow the paths what will happen فتفرق بكم عن سبيله it will deviate you from the straight path الله also says in the Quran ومن يشاقق الرسولا من بعد ما تبين له الهدع ويتبع غير السبيل المؤمنين نوليه ما تولى والنصره جهن موساء anyone who goes against the messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم and also goes against the path of Allah سبحانه وتعالى and also goes against the path of the believers جهنما will be the final abode of that person and what an evil place that the person will be in so make sure my beloved brother that you hold onto the way of the believers the way of the messenger and the way that Allah sanctioned سبحانه وتعالى also be fearful of Allah سبحانه وتعالى in the action that you learn and be fearful of Allah سبحانه وتعالى in the actions that you come with the knowledge that you learn في الله in it also في الله in the actions that you come with فيههم في السر والعن فيههم privately and publicly sing with him سبحانه وتعالى الله تبارك وتعالى he said about the علامة the people of knowledge إنما يخش الله من عباده العلمة إن الله عزيز ونغفر they are really the ones who fear Allah alone are the people of knowledge they fear Allah تبارك وتعالى a lot they are conscious of Allah سبحانه وتعالى they fear Him privately and they fear Him publicly سبحانه وتعالى I also want to encourage you my beloved brother that you come with فعل الخيرات every act of good there is try to do it hasten towards it Allah says in the Quran فستبق الخيرات hasten to the good Allah also says وسارعوا إلى مغفرة من ربكم hasten to the forgiveness of your Lord Allah also says سبحانه وتعالى إن الذين هم من خشية ربهم مشفقون والذين هم بآيات ربهم يؤمنون والذين هم بآيات والذين هم بربهم لا يشريكون والذين يؤتون ما آتوا وقلوبهم وجلة أنهم إلى ربهم راجعون ولا يسارعون في الخيرات وهم لها سادخون الله says the ones who are scan of Allah سبحانه وتعالى they are conscious of Him سبحانه وتعالى they believe in the verses of Allah سبحانه وتعالى they also they do not associate partners with Allah they believe in Allah and they come with righteous deeds by giving sadaqah for the sake of Allah they give their wealth in sadaqah and also they believe in Allah and they come with righteous actions Allah says about them وقلوبهم وجلة when they come with all of that their hearts are in a state of fear Allah says about them ولا يسارعون في الخيرات they are the ones who hasten in good and they are the ones who are going to reach it so this is the best thing that I can encourage you to do also be gentle many people when they seek knowledge and they learn a little bit they become a bit harsh and they become tough and they become rough to their own family members and the people around them so be gentle and be patient sometimes people won't listen to you that doesn't mean they hate the truth maybe it's because of the way you're addressing the point maybe it's because the way you're saying it so come with gentleness and softness وليذاركة the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم he said in the hadith الرفق لا يكون في شيء إلا زعنه that gentleness is not in something يعني a person doesn't come with gentleness except that he beautifies them gentleness in your speech gentleness in your actions وقولوا للناس يحسنة say to the people that which is good and patience the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم he said patience is a light it will show you things through patience الله will open things for you سبحانه وتعالى also be with the truth wherever it is don't restrict the truth to people but know the truth you will learn its people anything which I have said that was wrong or incorrect is from me a shaitan and Allah and his messenger are both free from it سبحانك الله ومحمده أشهد أن لا إله إلا الله استغفرك وتولى


So, the next lightning talk is on energy and energy grids. Please welcome our speaker. Hi, my name is Nico Rieke. I'm going to talk something about energy data, why it's important for you. My background is electrical engineering. I studied that. And for the last four and a half years, I've been building on an energy data transmission platform, which is mostly decentralized. It's called HelloData. It's in the Netherlands. And I think it's all, you can all use energy data some way, one way or another. Because it's important, firstly, because it's a large part of every consumer's bills. So there's a lot of optimization you can do. And secondly, because it's very influential in terms of it says something about your behavior. This is a daily pattern of consumer's usage. You say they are sleeping, just refrigerate using some energy. Then they wake up, they use energy. Then during the lunch, maybe they heat up something in the microwave. And they come back, they watch television. Here they do the washing. Here afterwards, when you go to bed, they do the dishes. So there's a lot of things you can do with energy data in potential, as long as you know how to use it. And that's why I'm giving this talk. So traditionally, this is the electrical grid. We're generating power plants and it's fed all the way down to industry and residential consumers. And we need to build the energy we deliver. And we build ideally barrels of oil or amounts of energy. But there's a difference between energy in a barrel and flow, energy flowing. And if you take it to integrate it over time, so you have energy flowing, at a certain point you'll have a volume of energy. And that's the difference between, for example, in energy you have kilowatts, which is the flow, the flow of energy, the amounts rushing in. And kilowatt hours, which is a volume of energy. This is something to look out for. And especially in billing, we're interested in the amount of energy we delivered. So on the left are the internals of a gas meter, which are basically two containers, two lungs pumping up gas into the other. So we know in pieces of gas how much is delivered. On the right we have a disk, which is for the electricity meter, which is voltage and current, which results into power, which is flow. And that spins the wheel on the meter and thereby registers the amount of energy we delivered. So the difference in measurement. But that's not enough, because if as a consumer we only register our numbers every year, in the meantime, there's going to be real, significant energy storage. So if there's an imbalance, we have to solve it right away, the supply and demand. That's a real-time struggle that's going on in the grid. So we have grid operators who maintain the stability of the grid, supply and demand. And associated with that is a market. And so, while back, decades back, they came up with a standard and the OBIS codes listed below define very specific measurement points you might be interested in. If you're going towards smart meter energy data, this is something to look out for, because this is sort of the guideline on how to interpret everything you're getting. It's very old. It's not like JSON. It's different. But luckily, there are libraries available if you can make sense of it. But this is all fine and good. This is the old world. And now we're getting into renewables. So this happens. And more importantly, this is happening where solar panels are put on the roofs of consumers, individual houses, maybe small windmills. And energy is being generated everywhere. And now, especially in Germany, to the point where in 2015, we were very tied to our chairs. I was on the desk having a separate laptop just watching the grid because there was a solar eclipse. So at a certain point, a last part of the generation, the solar panel generation would drop. And after about half an hour, it would come back. But we need to match supply demand instantly. So how do we manage demand? There was a lot of things we did beforehand. But this is something to watch out for. We have to maintain a continuous balance. So this is the week in Germany. And what you can see here is this is the energy being generated. So at the top, you see the orange peaks. There is solar energy. At the beginning of the week, there wasn't much solar. There also wasn't much wind, which is the greenest one. But at the end of the week, when there's less energy usage, there was more solar, more wind. And to compensate, there was more coal and other fossil fuels being used in the beginning of the week. And this then translates to price. You see the blue and the red lines which are the prices the day before the day begins. People can bid energy. They can supply. And also are going to use. And in the day itself, people can also go to the market. So we have a mismatch. We have low solar wind power. So therefore the prices are high in it. Then it's viable to start up the power plants. The conventional ones. And there are parties who go into this price difference. And I think one of the first parties was in 2009 in the UK. There was, I would say, a lock-in fridge. It was a fridge tied to the internet. And in this case, N-Power would determine when to switch it on and off. It would maintain a very constant temperature. It would be in control. And now this year in Belgium there will be a similar project with boilers. And they estimate to roll out 10,000 boilers connected to the internet which are controlled by Restore. And they then have effectively 25 megawatt to control to the grid and to go to the market with. But what does that mean for me as a consumer? Well, I want to participate in the market. I need pricing and therefore frequent billing, because the prices fluctuate. Therefore I need a frequent readout and thus in the IT world of the day we need a digital remote readout, which is the smart meter that's coming along. And in Europe, most of the countries are doing that. This is a report from 2014 to say how far we are and what the different countries are doing. For example, in Germany they are fairly limited in the rollout and other countries they far much further and this is the timeline by which they are doing it. So most of the countries in Europe are already pushing out smart meters now. One of the first was Sweden and the experience there is that they introduce monthly billing instead of yearly and now even they offer hourly billing. So it's a much more frequent market people can participate in. Of course there are privacy concerns. This is a poster from a campaign in the Netherlands about the smart meter spying on people. And this is a real concern because what do you know what they are reading because it's a wireless uplink, right? Maybe there are policies in place but still. So luckily in the Netherlands, also a bit in Belgium in Luxembourg we have a P1 port which is a serial port by which the readings are spit out as well in addition. And in the UK we have this ZigBee smart energy so locally you can put a display and read it out. And it's very dependent on just the energy company. And so in practice if you want to do something with energy data on the one hand you have the verified chain. It's on the top where you have the smart meter reporting back to the back end and the bills are drafted and inside is given but there's a low latency. We don't have much bandwidth in the telecom industry, not enough or not cheap enough for all the smart meters. So what we do also in practice if you want to do something with energy data is you have something in house collecting energy data. You either use it there or you put it on your own back end do some analysis, maybe disaggregation, that's where you look at patterns to see what the different devices are using and then you display it there. In Germany they have a quite different model where they are very large distribution system operators. So every region has a small grid operator. So there are various meters involved so what they do is they make a small communication device which is a smart meter gateway that connects to the meters that are available connects locally for a readout to the internet, to the energy suppliers but what's in the left corner in the bottom left corner is the CLS, the controllable load system. So this energy device has the potential to switch or direct energy data and some appliances, so maybe your solar panels the energy company could potentially switch them off if they're allowed to in the right authorizations are given. So then you come to the real need for a home energy management system. This is the scientific term. This is a system that is used to control your energy usage. And if you want to do something with flexibility this is a very strict and good framework but how to define it. You have something uncontrollable which is statistics solar panels, maybe your computer usage you want to use it, whatever it takes you have something in which you can shift in time because this is a given pattern like a washing machine and you can delay it for a couple of minutes. You have something which is having to be stored at just the temperature you have to maintain. You can vary a lot with when you put it on, switch it on or off and you can also store in the battery of course. And there's the unconstrained where you can say okay I have a diesel generator I can switch it on whatever I want. A colleague of mine he built this charger for his Tesla and he charges his Tesla when the solar panels are generating electricity just by way of experiment. So ideally we'll be in a world where there's energy APIs everywhere, right? We're not there yet but it's coming and we can use this also this is an experiment in Brooklyn where they built a local grid which is balanced, it's a microgrid we call it and they use a Ethereum integration to provide a local cost way of dealing with cost. Now there are various protocols, frameworks especially also for price in particular which you can use if you want to do something with energy data but to summarize there's an increased smart media coverage coming more smart devices are coming the IoT frameworks are available are maturing and there's ever more APIs you can use for measurement and control and if I look out I say okay there's we have to look for easier market adoption so people can join in to the markets that's out there we need to improve the open standards and APIs that are there because some of them are lacking in certain places we need to get those energy management systems out to the houses of people and we have to keep some personal data locker where people can store the precious data especially from years past because there's a lot of intelligence you can use to learn your energy usage so I'm looking for your attention maybe there are questions are you sure that in Belgium you have Serial-Odpute? and some of them do I think it's Hewe F which is providing smart meters with P1 some not all energy companies it's a bit of spread from the Dutch smart meters I have two questions one leads to the other what is the private share of total energy consumption and I'm assuming that the private share of total energy consumption is fairly low so maybe who says that this expensive rollout is worth it because energy prices are dropping so maybe it's simply not worth it to introduce this to private markets maybe it should only be industry that uses this smart grid the industry already has facilities to provide smart metering and the consumer household I think they are limited in what they take on from the market in terms of energy but still we have to get those renewables and if we want to put solar panels everywhere we have to involve the consumers the houses because we need property we need land that's the main thing so we have to incorporate houses there that's the development that's the way I see it and so yeah otherwise or you have companies coming in and renting your roof that's also a business model but then it's not up to the consumer anymore one more question will it be possible for the consumer to take part in the market so that they can sell energy when the prices are high possibly I've got an electric car battery and then I store the cheap solar energy and sell it when it's high so I can empty my battery that's very difficult as a consumer you need to be a business or even the 15 minute billing they do in the energy market it's not readily available there are organizations stepping up to ease that to ease the opening up the market or people collaborate and then they go to the market maybe with a white label party in between some models are coming up but it's still it's not so far okay thank you very much thank you again


Hi everybody it's Sam at Mixed Up Grail thank you for watching my tutorial today I'm going to be showing you how I've made this really fun very festive penguin wine bottle holder or gift bag so you can see there it is an empty bottle but it's very strong it will hold a full bottle but I'll just use this one just so you can see kind of the height and everything how it all kind of you know fits inside there it's um it's really really fun now this is using a cut file so this is actually using my digital cutting machine because I know many of you have your Cricut and your Brother Scan and Cut and your Silhouette machines so I have the USB from Trimcraft and it is the first edition buildable Christmas and I will share the links to this one below it's really really fun to make I'll give you the measurements of what I increased it to and I'm going to show you just how I've put it all together but of course if you don't have something like this then you can you know look at other things that you might have and obviously other files that you also might have but if you don't have any you know cutting machines you can make the piece that I'm going to show you inside and build up something else on the outside so you know think think outside the box think of other things that you might already have in your stash that you can use this you might already have maybe some kind of decorative piece of paper or some shape or something that you could stick onto it I don't know but you know there are other ways around it but he's very very sweet I've used some of the iridescent artificial snow there on the hat just so it's it's got a bit of texture I put some glitter on the bow there and I just think it looks lovely I've also reinforced the sides there with some with well a couple of eyelets and it's it is it's super strong the back is just the same I have added the feet but I've kept it blank but it's the same silhouette kind of effect there and yeah love it really really good so I'm going to make another one now and show you how to put it together okay so these are all the elements that I've cut on my machine I've also got some ribbon there for later on so once you obviously upload your file you want to increase it if you do have this one because I know some of you do to 11 inches okay and once you increase this you know this piece everything else will increase with it so you know you know that you're going to have all your proportions correct so I have gone ahead and done this one first so that's the the main detail then I went and so I've done that on black card then I went and cut just the outline on white and that's going to stick over the top of this one here and they will all line up perfectly like so then I went ahead and I cut another two of the white and I've stuck them together using my calau so this is a very strong piece now because obviously we are putting something heavy in it you don't have to put the wine bottle in there could be any bottle it might be a nice bottle of olive oil or something like that so many things can be popped inside so those will be stuck together then I went ahead and cut the hat and I've cut two I've done two of pretty much everything just to add a bit of strength so I've done two of those and stuck them on top of each other there's your little snow pom pom and snow pom pom that's your little pom pom and I've again die cut two I've die cut just one of that one because I'm going to be adding the snow over to it and that's mainly going to be stuck on the top of his head but you can see there how that's going I mean I guess you could have it down like that so it looks like the thing but I done a bit of a bobble hat I think I thought it looked quite cute then I've got the candy cane here so I've done the white for the background and then the detail in the red then I've done two of the little bow tie in the blue just one little nose there which will perfectly piece back into what's already been cut out so once I've stuck that onto the white oh got it upside down had it right the first way it does fit in there perfectly and then I've done four feet two on the front and two on the back again because it is actually holding itself up on the feet so you know with that weight of that bottle but it does it works really really well but you can bring the feet up higher if you wanted to so you could have them up like that so it's resting more on the body but I brought mine right down like so so that's everything I need so I'm going to stick it all together and then I'll talk you through how to do the inside box piece okay so I'm just about to stick down the other foot so stick the front one down you would have seen just however you want it then I've put the back piece just lying over the top and to make sure you get everything level and then and just stick the feet on the back there that way when I stand this up once it's all together it's not going to rock or anything like that it's all going to be nice and even okay so for the inside box you want two pieces that are four and this is the default A4 length so it's 11 and three quarters 12 inches will be fine or 11 will be fine if it's 11 it just means it's just going to be slightly shorter and on this side you can get away with that extra quarter of an inch so you can use 12 it will still work okay that's obviously you know I know not everybody's going to be doing the penguin but whatever you're doing that's the same kind of height as mine because actually I didn't I've done the height of obviously the penguin but then you have the hat attached as well so you do end up getting an extra let's just have a little look what we're on here it's actually about 12 and a half tall so it is taller than in fact a wine bottle is exactly 12 and a half so yeah it's going to work okay so with these two pieces here you want to score along the short side you want to score it half an inch and three and a half so it's going to have a three by three base that is just exactly what the bottom of a standard wine bottle is so if you do want it to be thicker then you will have to have this I guess maybe go to four and a half by the same length but then score at a quarter of an inch on both sides but it'll just give you that slightly wider side okay and then this along the long side you want to score it three but if you want it slightly bigger then score it three and a half okay but to have that three by three base which fits that wine in nicely you don't want it shaking around too much and adding pressure and stuff and then that's a good size so those two pieces score both the same and then just fold and burnish all of the score lines also all of the cardstock I've used is 300gsm or it's the little cardstock which is very very thick as well so it's a really like I said strong piece once that glues on there as well it's um yeah we'll definitely hold and if you are worried maybe for using a lighter cardstock reinforce the base here that's the most important part so it doesn't dip put a couple of layers of you know extra cardstock on the bottom there so all you want to do here is just cut up these two score lines just like so just to free it up and just take a little wedge off of the top piece like so don't need to worry about it with the other one so it's just something kind of like that again just do this one here okay and what's going to happen is this is going to fold up we're going to stick the sides like so so we've got a nice right angle we're going to do the same with that side but first of all in fact you can remove one on one of these remove these pieces here just on one although if you do want to add even more strength I guess you can keep two in but it might just be a little bit bulky I'm just going to remove that one there okay so the one that we've just removed the pieces from will sit on top of that one so first of all I'm just going to add some glue onto the base of this one okay so you'll have this long piece because it's going to come up like that and then the wine bottle will fit inside that piece and also when we go to stick it down it's very similar to how I've done a few of my other boxes but you can have that more you know it's like a vase kind of shape so again that's another way to widen it but still keep that base because sometimes bottles might have some decorative kind of shape to them so although the base is that that size it might then go out thicker you know you can expand this if you want to as long as it all stays behind whatever it is that you're sticking it to but you would have noticed me use that if you follow a lot of my gift bags I've done that style before and it's quite a nice way to be able to make them fit your you know your needs and whatever it is you're wrapping so all I'm going to do here is just add a little bit of glue to the bottom because I want mine to just go you know nice and straight so I'm just going to stick my glue and then just pop those pieces down there just so we've got it you know as best you know as the right angles you can once you stick all this bit down then you can shape it even more I'm just going to hold that in place for a second and then flip it over and just repeat and do the same okay so now we've got something like this so I'm just going to pop that to one side and I'm just going to decorate the top here of the hat before I kind of you know put it all together because it's a bit easier to control all of the the snowflakes that I'm going to add to it so I'm just using some Tombow because it's a tacky glue it will stick to you know everything anything that kind of hits it is going to grab so and it will stay nice and tacky so just try not to go over the edge because it will squash down a bit once I kind of push everything onto it the glue will kind of spread out and do its thing I'm just going to add it all there and also on the little pom pom here and then I've got my trusty bag of flakes this just never seems to go down I've used it on so much but I'm going to go in here a bit bit lazy this time and just push it all down I've got myself well I didn't get myself into a mess but there was just flakes everywhere when I made the Christmas village so just push all that down I can just shake away any excess I'll brush off some of those pieces once it dries but it does look really really fun there we go I've just brushed some of it off his face and once it's completely dry I just added more there I didn't clean your brush very well okay so that's that all covered and then I will also while it's nice and flat I'm just going to add some sparkle onto his little bow tie there and it always goes on a bit darker but once that dries it will go back to that lighter turquoise colour and then you can always top it up again as well but once it starts to dry you should pick up a sparkle there looks really nice like you could put something you know bling in the middle as well but we'll keep it like that so while that's just kind of drying I'm going to work with the back first so I'm going to run some just thinking what glue I think I'm going to stick with no I'm going to go for because this grabs nice and quick I'm going to go for the cosmic shimmer I have got another one but I want to get I need to keep this in my thing upside down I'm just going to run the glue all the way along this side the other side and the base and just do one at a time just make sure you cover all of that again if you want to add another panel of cardstock on here and then put glue on that and attach it to this you can but because of the glues I'm using I know they're strong and I've already done one I know it holds the wine so what you want to do then is with the bottom bring it down so it sits nice and even with the bottom of in my case the bottom of his body there and then just make sure it stays as straight as you can really but this is where I mean you could expand it out so it comes up to the sides here but I don't need to I'm just going to go in there's my bone folder there you've got a little bit of positioning time repositioning time even with this glue but like I said it does bond pretty quick and the clouds good as well if you kind of let it sit for a minute then pull it apart and it goes all stringy and then instantly kind of push it back together again and it just bonds really strong it's like a super glue kind of thing so now we've got that one side there already and then the front's pretty easy to do because you've got this to obviously push it against but now I'm just going to cover all this in glue as well and with this one I'm just going to kind of sit it over the top I can see that bit there I'm just going to stand up and I'm just going to look down I can use my monitor there you just want to make sure that you get it kind of as lined up as possible really well it's a bit out there there we go okay so now I've just got some of my brownies these blue stars actually because I think they look really nice and I've just got my punch here and I'm going to pop it on its side and I'm just going to come in as far down as it will let me in the center there and just punch you have to worry if they're not exact on each side it's not you know you're not going to notice that at all and then again punch that one and then I'm going to feed these through I'm not going to put any backs on them I don't think I've got them off of these ones actually they'd be like a silver but I'm not too worried again pop them on there and then I'm just going to squeeze these ones down okay so there's my reinforced little holes there and then I'm going to thread through my ribbon and then I'm just tying three strong knots all on top of each other just to stop that coming through and again on this one pull that all through and now you've got your very strong handle and I can pop this back in and there we have a really fun gift bag you could pop a little kind of necklace around him with your gift tag hanging I'm probably just going to have my gift tag hanging down the side here and I just I love it it's so strong I promise you this is very very strong as long as you've got the good wake hard stocks to start with use good glues I always say this is like cement in a bottle it's brilliant especially when you want to you know those heavier gifts so yeah really pleased with this one and like I said I don't do lots of cutting file tutorials just because not everybody has the machines but then more and more people are getting the machines now and they are becoming very very popular and I do love them and they do make these really fun very unique gifts because you can alter the sizes so no nobody's will ever really be the same so I think these are really fun and I've noticed that my candy canes are different I don't know which is the right one left or right is it that way or is it that way something's making me think that one but then that one looks okay as well I don't know is there a right or wrong you tell me anyway thank you for watching today I hope you've enjoyed them I hope you think they're quite sweet because I do and I'll be back again soon with another tutorial thanks for watching bye


It's great to be under this tent with all of you. Under this tent are President Donald Farish, members of the University Board of Trustees, members of the School of Law Board of Directors, our honorary degree recipients, faculty and staff of the law school, alumni, and last but not least, the class of 2015, their family members and their friends. Good afternoon and welcome to the 2015 commencement exercises at Roger Williams University School of Law. Please rise, although it appears you've already done that, as Renee De La Garza sings the national anthem. Oh, say can you see by the dawn's early light what so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming, whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight, o'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming. And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air, gave proof through the night that our flag was still there. Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave o'er the land of the free and the home of the brave. Please be seated. Three years ago, the class of 2015 began the journey that we celebrate today, a journey made up of rigorous, lively, and sometimes unpredictable classroom instruction. Memos and rewrites of memos and rewrites of rewritten memos, exams, clinical work, and externships from Providence to South Korea, co- and extracurricular activities and service, the provision of pro bono legal services to the poor, the voiceless, and the oppressed. Their guides on this journey were the remarkably talented and dedicated faculty of this law school. And I would like the faculty to stand and be acknowledged for all they've done for the class of 2015. As we proceed to recognize several individuals, the class of 2015 has chosen to honor for their special contributions during the journey. I ask us to do so in memory of Professor Robert Brighton Kent, who passed away this year and who made so many special contributions to the law school community. First, the class selected, as has become our tradition, two professors of the year, one from the full-time faculty and one from the group of leading lawyers and judges who make up our adjunct faculty. The winner of the award for best full-time professor is John Chung, who teaches. You applauded all over my lines there. The award for adjunct professor of the year goes to Judge Judith Savage. Let me our distinguished jurist in residence. Judge Savage served with distinction on the Rhode Island Superior Court for 20 years. Her teaching here has focused on criminal law and procedure. And in the spring, she organized a symposium on mass incarceration that brought hundreds together under the law school roof, a gathering that has been called by those who would know absolutely unprecedented in Rhode Island. Judge Savage, please rise and accept our thanks and congratulations. Each year, the graduating class also recognizes a member of the staff who went above and beyond to help them navigate their way through law school. This year, there are two recipients of the staff member of the year award. They are Jody Haley, assistant director of career development and financial aid officer, Rachelle Abruse. Jody and Rachelle, please rise and accept our thanks for your support of the class of 2015. It now gives me great pleasure to present the Dean's Distinguished Service Award. The recipient, Kathy Massa, holds the title of assistant dean of business services at the law school. That rather modest title obscures the fact that she, and this is not news to anyone who works at the law school, is our chief operating officer, our chief financial officer, our chief of staff, and a chief concigliary all rolled into one. She's talented, she's hardworking, she is cool as a cucumber, and she is kind. Dean Massa has been employed here for over 20 years, and she has served with distinction to every law school dean who has had the pleasure to work with her. So it is with deep respect and admiration that I present the Dean's Distinguished Service Award to Dean Kathy Massa for her dedication and service to the law school. So now I want to turn our attention to those outside the law school who supported these graduates and are justifiably proud of and perhaps a little emotional about their accomplishments. I'd like to invite first the parents and grandparents of members of the class of 2015 to rise and accept our congratulations and the thanks of your children and grandchildren. There is another group out there of people bursting with pride today who have supported these graduates. Siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends, please rise and accept the round of applause for your support. Finally, many graduates are married or otherwise in long-term relationships. And many of our graduates are mothers or fathers. This is a very special day for the partners and any children of our graduates. They're looking forward to getting their loved ones back. I hope you have told them that bar exam review courses begin next week. But that can wait until Monday. Today is a day to celebrate. And I would ask all partners and children of the members of the class of 2015 to rise or be held aloft and accept congratulations and thanks. The School of Law is most fortunate to have at our helm Dr. Donald Farish, the president of Roger Williams University and the School of Law. After years of successful teaching and research as an academic biologist, Dr. Farish turned to administration. And he has proven to be at once a steady hand and an innovator. And if that wasn't enough, Dr. Farish has a law degree in addition to his PhD in biology. So unlike many university presidents, he knows what you went through to get to this day. And it is now my honor to turn the program over to President Donald Farish. Thank you very much, Dean. Distinguished guests, faculty and staff of the Roger Williams University School of Law, alumni, friends, families of the graduates and the graduates themselves. Good afternoon and welcome to your day. Commencement for the class of 2015. This is an exciting day for you, the graduates, because you are finally finished with your formal coursework and training and are ready to move on to the next stage of your lives. But it's also exciting for me because I was present three years ago when you took the oath of ethics administered by Chief Justice Sattel of the Rhode Island Supreme Court at the beginning of your first year of law school. As I know you were aware, Rhode Island was for many years one of the few states in this country without its own law school. And there was no consensus at all that our state even needed a law school. This university took a step other Rhode Island universities were unwilling to take and established the state's first and only law school. And those who once doubted the need for a Rhode Island law school of all but universally agreed that they were mistaken. In the 21 year history of our law school, we have repeatedly witnessed just how profound its impact has been on the workings and culture of the state of Rhode Island. In addition to obvious improvements in the quality of legal practice and the much greater availability of legal services to the public, there is also no question that our law school has played a significant role in raising the public's expectations of the ethical performance of elected officials. In the latest edition of our law magazine out just this week, we note that 41 graduates of our law school are now working in the office of the Rhode Island Attorney General, including the Attorney General himself. And those thoughts lead me to this next point. It is traditional at commencements everywhere for the campus president to charge the graduates. And since we at Roger Williams enjoy honoring academic traditions, I have the responsibility of charging you now. You are entering an honorable profession. As a nation that follows the rule of law, we depend on having some of each generation's sharpest minds becoming lawyers and ensuring that the rights of society are balanced with the rights of the individual. We need talented lawyers to protect society from those who would cause it harm, to defend the individual against overly aggressive regulation and governmental bureaucracy, to ensure that all members of our society have access to legal representation when they need it. In short, to keep society's machinery running smoothly. These activities must be carried out at the highest ethical levels, so as to ensure that society never becomes mistrustful of the legal process. These are significant responsibilities, but asking anything less of you is to diminish the importance of the roles you will play. Graduates of the Roger Williams University School of Law Class of 2015, we know you have the intelligence, the education, and the experience to meet the challenges you will face and the expectations we place on you. So go forth with confidence and resolve. Aim high and make your mark on the world. And as you do so, remember your professors and those who helped you to get to where you are today and make them proud. Thank you. One mark of a great law school is a great board of directors. And this law school has one. That board is chaired by the honorable William E. Smith, Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island. He became a member of that court in 2002 when he was confirmed by the United States Senate and he became chief in 2013. He is well regarded for his performance as a trial judge, for his intellect, his temperament, and his character. And he has already shown himself to be an effective leader and administrator in his new role as chief of the court. His judicial career was preceded by a distinguished career as a practicing lawyer in Providence. He has served the law school in many capacities for many years. He hosts our students in his chambers as part of our clinical externship program. He is taught as an adjunct every semester for many years, sometimes more than one course a semester. And he has conceived of and taught some truly innovative courses. Now we are benefiting from his leadership and wise counsel as not just the chair of the law school board but as a trustee of Roger Williams University. To bring greetings from the board of directors, I am pleased to introduce to you the honorable William E. Smith. Thank you, President Farish. It's a real honor for me to be here on behalf of the board of directors to both congratulate you and help send you on your way to what we know will be successful and we hope for some of you lucrative careers. It seems like everyone's been asked to stand and I think it would be appropriate if I asked the members of the board of directors of the law school to stand and be recognized so you can. I think you know who most of these people are but what you have here before you is the Chief Justice of the Rhode Island Supreme Court, Justice Flaherty from the Rhode Island Supreme Court, Judge Vogel from the Superior Court. We have other judges of the Superior Court as well as distinguished attorneys from private practice and elsewhere in the community serving in business. We have a terrific board of directors of this law school whose call it is to ensure the strength and stability and the continued vitality of this law school both for current students but for alumni like you who are moving out into the community. So as you leave here today, I can assure you that this board will continue to work tirelessly and give selflessly of their time and their energy and of their talent to ensure the continued value of your degrees and they do this because they believe in the mission of this law school. They also believe in all of you as the next generation of lawyers who will rise up to take our place on the courts and in the courtrooms and in the boardrooms of Rhode Island and elsewhere. They know that this is part of giving back to the community when you've achieved the success that these folks have achieved to give back by giving to you and all I would like to impart to you is to ask that when you get there that you too give back to the next generation of lawyers that will come behind you because you're entering a truly wonderful and honored profession and it is a profession and you owe it to the next generation that comes behind you to pay back what all these folks, faculty, administrators, staff and board have given to you and I ask that you do that. So congratulations to you and your families and your friends, we wish you all the best for success in all of your future endeavors and we know you will achieve it. So thank you and congratulations. Thank you Judge Smith. The School of Law is indeed fortunate to be able to award honorary degrees today to Robert B. Mann Esquire and to the Honorable Roderick L. Ireland. But Chairman of the Board of Directors, the Honorable William Smith, please escort Robert B. Mann to the podium. Attorney Robert Mann, for the past 40 years, you have been a ubiquitous and readily recognizable presence in some of Rhode Island's highest profile criminal trials. Yet you have spent the bulk of your career defending mostly poor and anonymous clients, ensuring that all of them, no matter how unpopular or despised they may be in the court of public opinion, received top-notch legal representation in the court of law. A former state prosecutor once observed that despite your Ivy League credentials and despite your decades of courtroom experience, you quote, still hold dear those beliefs that we kicked around back in the 60s. Peace, love, brotherhood and the betterment of society. End quote. Born in Brooklyn, New York, you were raised in Germany where your father, also a lawyer, was stationed as a jag. As a teenager, you distinguished yourself both as an expert marksman and as an academic ace winning admission to Yale University at the age of 16. Following a two-year tour of duty with the U.S. Army in Vietnam, you returned to enter Yale Laws Class of 1973, where you counted people like Bill and Hillary Clinton among your classmates. In the years since, your idealistic fervor has won you near-universal respect on the state's bar and bench. When you defended Joseph Mulicone Jr. during the Rhode Island Credit Union crisis in the early 90s, a state attorney confided, Bob scares you. He comes into court so well-prepared and mechanically sound, it's ridiculous. While defending Craig Price, convicted of committing multiple homicides when he was a teenager, you told a critical press, it's not just his rights I'm fighting for, but everyone else's as well. Attorney Robert Mann, your extraordinary dedication to justice, fairness, and the rule of law for all is an inspiration and example to our graduates. It is our privilege to award you this day the Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, given 15th of May, 2015. Would Chief Justice Paul Sattel please escort the honorable Roderick L. Ireland to the podium. Chief Justice Ireland, you are a man of many firsts. You were the first African-American appointed to the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts in its 323-year history, and the first to ascend to the position of Chief Justice. You have presided over many judicial firsts as well, not least of all, your groundbreaking decision in the 2003 case of Goodridge v. Department of Public Health, which became the nation's first state Supreme Court case, declaring same-sex marriage constitutional. In your nearly four decades on the bench, you have served on the Boston Juvenile Court, the Massachusetts Appeals Court, and finally from 1997 to 2014 on the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts, the last five years of that term as Chief Justice. As a result of your myriad contributions to the legal profession, you have been awarded numerous honors and taught on the faculty of a number of law schools, including Harvard, Boston University, and New York University. Your two-volume treatise on Massachusetts Juvenile Law remains the state's definitive treatise on that subject. Your law review articles reveal an academic insight that rivals your judicial prowess on a range of topics from criminal law to constitutional law. You've also brought your unique judicial perspective to bear in your writings, exploring the interplay of the judiciary with the legislative and executive branches as well as the business community and the media. You have demonstrated your dedication to diversifying the judiciary at all levels through increased training programs as well as scholarships and fellowship opportunities for minorities. Chief Justice Ireland, your dedication to public service and the administration of justice and your remarkable life in the law serves as an example to all our graduates and it is our privilege to word to you this day, the Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, 15th of May, 2015. I now invite the honorable Roderick Ireland to make the commencement address. Members of the Board of Trustees, President Ferris, Dean Yolnowski, members of the faculty and administration, Attorney Robert Mann, my fellow honorary degree recipient, distinguished guests, friends and family, and most importantly members of the class of 2015. Greetings. Today is a very special, wonderful, beautiful, marvelous day. A day that marks a milestone in your lives. I say that because you're graduating from law school and there is no more noble or rewarding profession than being a lawyer. It is my privilege and pleasure to address you on this momentous occasion. I want to begin by telling you members of the class of 2015 that I know that you have worked very, very hard to get here today and you can take great pride in your accomplishments. You've been taught the mechanics of how to be a good problem solver. You know how to think like a lawyer and to do the things that lawyers do. By definition, you are the best and the brightest. And as the best and the brightest, I know that you have what it takes to be successful in your future endeavors. But you also have learned some lessons along the way that you may not even know you have learned. And these lessons in their simplicity may be just as important as anything you may have learned in a classroom. There are three that have stood the test of time for me since my graduation from law school many years ago and I would like to share them with you today. Lesson number one, be humble. As it was indicated, I sat as a judge for 37 years and I feel unusually fortunate indeed blessed to have had the opportunities that came my way over the years. But I am also well aware that I have always, always, always stood upon the shoulders of others who came before me. Those who opened doors so that I and the generations who followed could walk through. The point I wanna make here is that there is no such thing as a self-made man or woman. None of us got to where we are all by ourselves. Now, of course, I ran with the ball when it was passed to me as you must. But I never could have accomplished what I have without the guidance, support, assistance, and love that I received from others. It is the same with you. So as you go forward with your careers, remember to temper your inevitable future success with humility and its byproduct, kindness. I include kindness because as a society, we need lawyers who not only can offer effective assistance in times of need but who also can connect with the underlying humanity of those persons in need of their counsel. Treating people with respect, dignity, and kindness is often just as important as providing sound legal advice. So lesson one, be humble. You will engender a generosity of spirit which not only impacts the lives of others in a positive way but also makes you a better person. A lawyer with a caring heart and a moral conscience will always be sought after by potential clients and employers. Lesson two, be prepared. Law is one of the most powerful disciplines in this world. You have everything it takes to succeed but since, as the Bible says, time and chance happen to us all, you must always be prepared. In my experience, preparation trumps prestige, entitlement, and even raw intelligence. We are well into a new social, political, economic, and legal millennium. Those of us who have chosen careers in the law have a special responsibility to be as prepared as we possibly can as we confront both the known and unknown challenges brought on by these uncertain times. Time and effort are required to provide meaningful assistance to clients who have put their trust in you. Many times the difference between success and failure centers on your attitude and the conscientiousness that you bring to your work. This means, students, graduates, you've got to roll your sleeves up and get your hands dirty doing the necessary research and grunt work to serve your clients well. You must be thorough and you must be persistent.  But not only must you be thorough in all your work, you must also be ethical. Preparation and integrity, never forget that the most important thing you really have as a lawyer is your reputation and that is built on preparation and integrity. So lesson two, be prepared, is a commitment to yourself to always do your personal best. Lesson three, make a difference. When I started my career as a public defender back in the early 70s, I represented the so-called despised clients. Those charged with criminal conduct. Typically my clients were poor, uneducated, and in many ways invisible. Later, when I sat on the bench as a juvenile court judge, I saw countless families and children in distress on a daily basis who suffered from the raw realities of their impoverished existence.  They were so mired in poverty that they had no hope that they could ever change their circumstances. In a sense, you could call them the have-nots of society. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. actually referred to such individuals as the man farthest down. I have to say that these experiences had a profound effect on my worldview. In many ways, they shaped my paradigm. Every day I think about the stark contrast between the realities of the world in which you and I operate with relative ease and the realities of the world in which so many others must struggle to survive. A world where even the most mundane tasks are almost insurmountable due to poverty, illiteracy and most tellingly, the lost of hope. So as we celebrate you and your achievements today, I ask you to think about these persons who are the man farthest down.  For somewhere down the line, there will be an opportunity for you the fortunate who have an education and now a profession to do good, to do the right thing, to take a stand for the values that brought you to law. You just have to open your eyes and your hearts to the great need which exists and direct your efforts towards making a difference. Edward Everett Hale, the 19th century poet, wrote about the power of one, the influence that a single individual can have if motivated by heartfelt conviction. He said this, I am only one but still I am one. I cannot do everything but still I can do something. And though I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do the something that I can do. The power of one is what resonates with me as I speak to you about making a difference. There's a well-known street in the Boston area called Blue Hill Avenue.  It's about a mile from where I live and it winds through several inner-city communities to the outskirts of Boston's thriving business district. Its current significance dates back to the civil rights area when it was the center of unrest and riots. It is impossible not to see the vestiges of poverty that still exist along this four-mile stretch and equally impossible not to contemplate the continuing impact of poverty on the daily lives of so many people. I know Blue Hill Avenues exist in every community. I also know that one thing that is common to each one and that is there are lots of people in great need who live there, people who struggle mightily just to make it from day to day. While gains have been made, much remains to be done. We are far from having the kind of society that we are capable of achieving in this age and time. Again, this brings me back to the power of one that each one of us has the power to change a life, to encourage and support the efforts of others to improve their situation in whatever way we can. Each one of us can and each one of us must do something to make a difference. In this respect, it's not so much where you start from, but what you do with what you've learned. Now, graduates, you are leaving this extraordinary school with a solid legal education.  Your legal education can take you into areas never even imagined when I was in law school. But wherever the paths lead you, I encourage you to embrace the responsibility that we all share in our privileged positions as guardians and protectors of the law. As the Bible says, from those to whom much is given, much is required. And I implore you to reach back to those who are in need and be a voice of empowerment for them. Our most sacred duty as lawyers is to ensure that the rule of law, due process, and fundamental fairness are ever present, not only in our justice system, but also in our broader society for the man far this down. Some of you will fulfill this duty through a public interest career, but if that is not your chosen path, and it certainly doesn't have to be, you can still be a volunteer for a social cause that speaks to your conscience. Or you can always provide welcome financial support to an organization trying to make a difference for people, issues, or things you care about. So lesson number three, make a difference in whatever way you can is not only a good thing to do, but also the right thing to do. Despite all the dissimilarities that may distinguish us, we are still all in the same boat. We have to help the least of us, the man far this down in order to help ourselves. I will close with the words of Martin Niemauer, a Protestant minister in Germany during the 1940s. During the Holocaust, he was held prisoner in a slave camp. When he got out, he wrote about humanity and our common bonds. Here's what he said. First, they came for the Jews. I was silent. I was not a Jew. Then they came for the communists. I was silent. I was not a communist. Then they came for the trade unionists. I was silent. I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for me. There was no one left to speak for me. You new graduates, please remember that it is your duty to speak for those who cannot speak for themselves. And never forget to say thank you to those who have helped you along the way. I congratulate you and hope that you will continue to grow and learn. I wish you only the very best, and I expect from you only your very best. Thank you and Godspeed. Thank you, Chief Justice Ireland. I now would like to recognize the class valedictorian, Nicole Marie Manzo, and invite her to offer her remarks. Nicole. Good afternoon. Dean Yolanski, President Farrish, members of the Board of Trustees and Board of Directors, faculty, staff, honored guests, family, friends, all of those watching remotely, and most importantly, the class of 2015. It seems like just yesterday we were gathering in the big courtroom for our 1L orientation. I was so nervous, yet so excited at the same time. Feelings very similar to what I feel as I stand before you today. It's all very bittersweet. That night, a second year student addressed our class. Her opening line pierced me and has stuck with me for the last three years.  At the time, we had no idea what the saying meant, but all I knew was I definitely did not sign up for miserable. We hadn't learned any canons of interpretation yet, but miserable really didn't seem like an ambiguous term. Three years later, I stand before you today and I could not be more wrong. Misery, at least in this context, is completely ambiguous. Misery is defined as a state of discomfort, and while the term is often considered pejorative, I've learned that it's not. You cannot have success without growth, and you cannot have growth without discomfort. It's called growing pains for a reason. Your bones, your joints, literally cannot grow without your body feeling some sense of discomfort. I didn't understand the saying when I heard it three years back, but today I think I would rephrase it. The last three years of our lives have been the best because we were miserable. The discomfort that every single one of us has felt at one point or another over the last three years is what has pushed us to conquer, feats that we didn't even know were conquerable. The strength, ambition, and passion that will drive every single one of our careers is deeply embedded in each of us because of the numerous times that we had to dig ourselves out of a hole, a hole that seemingly appeared bigger every time we found ourself in one. 48-hour cram sessions, the rule against perpetuities, three-hour exams that could never be completed unless you did them in nine, researching down a rabbit hole, 1L oral arguments, anxiety over hypotheticals that would never appear in a law school exam, juggling numerous obligations, juggling a life outside of these four walls. The list really is endless, and to be sure, each of us face different challenges. For example, while I willingly signed myself up for a second SAC attack with criminal procedure, I have successfully avoided Professor Richie's cold call for three years, and the challenges may have been different, and many of them outside the realm of law school, but the challenges each of us has faced have given us the ambition to overcome bigger challenges down the road. I ask you to think back to your first year. I know it's super painful, I don't wanna do it either, bite down on something if you need to. For most of us, there was nothing more miserable than first year. The discomfort of being thrown into a section of eager, young gunners, randomly called upon, and essentially told that we'll be fighting against each other for a single grade is completely overwhelming. You literally sit there as though you've just volunteered as tribute for your real life hunger games. You're forced to work. Work like someone is working 24 hours a day to take it away from you, because in reality, they are.  But you're pushing for what makes this the best years of your lives. At the end of first semester and the end of first year, I couldn't have imagined taking on another obligation, but standing at the end, I'm sure all of us wish that we only had Dean Yolansky's 10 page reading assignments. Yet somehow you exceed every single boundary, no matter how many odds are stacked against you, no matter how many times you tell your peers, may the odds be ever more in your favor. The truth is, they don't have to be, because even if they're not, you'll stand back up, you'll push to accomplish whatever you lock your eyes on. We're trained to have all the odds against us. They give us a hypothetical, continuously switch the facts out of our favor, but we'll still find something. We'll always find something to turn the situation around. And when we do, the discomfort that we feel in that one area, it begins to fade. It will eventually find home in another unfamiliar area, fade, find home again, fade, find home, and the process, it will continue forever more. But each time that discomfort fades, each time you're able to see the reasons why these have been the best years of our lives. Look at all we've done. We've published numerous articles in our law review. We held a symposium on mass incarceration that literally closed the entire Rhode Island judiciary. We won best brief at the 2015 John Brown Admiralty Moot Court Competition. We volunteered over 10,000 hours in pro bono legal services, landed 15 judicial clerkships from Rhode Island, all the way to Hawaii. We externed at placements, ranging from the First Circuit to the Boston Red Sox, and most importantly, we beat the faculty in three consecutive years in jeopardy. The motivation given to us from everything we conquer, no matter how small it may seem, what you get out of the process, what every single one of us has gained and achieved, where we stand today is not where we stood three years ago. Because today, we know that we can conquer literally anything, as long as we're able to leave our comfort zones and push through the discomfort. We are passionate, we are driven, we are determined, and we see no boundaries. This is why these are the best years of our lives. And you know why else? Well, as the saying goes, misery, it really loves company. The graduates that you sit amongst today have gone through all of this together. It was easy to find comfort, knowing that the person to your left and your right may be having a better day than you today, but at one point, they were the one in the hot seat. To have someone that can understand what you are going through, the changes that are occurring. Some of us even befended professors, and by befriended, I mean paid in a scene amount of money at the auction to have dinner at their house or parade around their state drinking with them. But they were our role models, someone who has walked in our shoes and had no issue throwing us over hurdles that we were never able to jump over on our own. And of course, we'll forever be indebted to our family and friends for all the love, support, care, and most of all, patience. I would not be standing up here today if it was not for my father, my mother, my sister, my boyfriend, Professor Tanya Menestier and my best friend, Larissa D'Lisi. The late night phone calls, coffee runs, pick me up text messages, talking us off the edge while we sat patiently waiting for grades to be posted precisely at 4 p.m. on a Tuesday and Thursday. When we went to law school, our family and friends went too. And I'm pretty sure none of our parents signed up for misery, but sitting here today and watching us, I guarantee you that they're able to see why these were the best years of our lives too. They say law school trains you to think differently. I was told that coming in, and I'm telling all of those interested in the career that coming out. Most are unable to break down how it happens, but we all do agree that somehow it happens. We're trained to look at two sides, analyze them, strategize, pick one, and argue it. Misery. There are two sides. You can say it's unhappiness, or you can say it's discomfort. Today, I'm picking discomfort. The discomfort that got us all to this very stage, the discomfort that will continue to help us succeed, boundaries that we never even knew existed, the discomfort that is necessary for the best to occur. While law school as a whole will never be considered a small fee, and most of us will start repressing the memories in really just a few short hours, I hope that each one of you looks back on the experience just as we look back on first year. I hope that when you feel discomfort, you remember moments like this. I hope that you appreciate every single puzzle piece in the bigger picture. And most importantly, I hope that you take this momentum and I hope that you run with it. Because if we've accomplished all of this in just three short years, there's no telling what will come next. Because of this, this right here is what misery feels like, I am definitely signing up again. Congratulations, class of 2015. I hope the next years of your life are even better than the last three. Thank you. Thank you, Nicole, and congratulations. And now, the main event. It is time to present the degree candidates and confer the law degrees. Will the candidates for the degree of Juris Doctor please rise? President Farrish, I certify on behalf of the faculty of the School of Law that these candidates are eligible for the degree of Juris Doctor. By virtue of the authority granted by the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations and delegated by the Board of Trustees of Roger Williams University, I confer upon you the degree of Juris Doctor with all the rights, privileges, and responsibilities pertaining thereto. Will the candidates please come forward? Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Diana Hassel, will present each candidate. Jeremy Michael Ricks, Magna Cum Laude. Andrew Alamand II Esquire. Lena Thomas. Jennifer Lee Cahoo. Chelsea Green. Allison Biddle. Alicia Mary Connor, Magna Cum Laude. Kristen Elise Sylvia, Magna Cum Laude. Courtney Elizabeth Ross, Magna Cum Laude. Kristen Lynn Kelleher, Magna Cum Laude. Alix Roberts Ogden, Cum Laude. Elizabeth Mara Hickey. John Paul McCauley. E. Gannon, Cum Laude. Clark Dahl. Vanessa Beiros, Cum Laude. Daniel Patrick Riley. Katherine G. Kielbasa, Cum Laude. Larissa Bianca DeLisi, Summa Cum Laude. Cole Marie Monzo, Summa Cum Laude. Erin F. Nadech, Summa Cum Laude. William Maxwell Daley, Magna Cum Laude. Christopher Joseph Fragomani, Cum Laude. Michael J. Hartley Esquire. QT Bennett III. Nicholas Michael Resendez, Cum Laude. Danielle E. Jifaux, Cum Laude. Justin G. Monti, Magna Cum Laude. John Kane III, Co-Yum. Jocelyn Valenzuela-Lopez, Spiker. Ayn C. Astorga, Magna Cum Laude. Amanda Urena. Sexton Smith III, Cum Laude. Robert Michael Elko. Sydney R. Kersh, Cum Laude. Mackenzie C. Flynn, Summa Cum Laude. Lee Maxwell. Hugh Michael Osterberg, Cum Laude. Christine Amanda Chavez. John C. Robinson. Justin Bobo. Nadia A. Comas. Sabra Marina Lapore. Anna Christina Maria. Alice J. Cunningham. Marissa Marie Saracena. Andrew James Koopa. Samantha Cabral Cavallo. Lindsay S. Freyermouth. Jacob Ryan Beale. Thomas H. McHugh Jr. Esquire. Daniel Christopher Hopkins. Megan Lee Kruger, Magna Cum Laude. Dominique K. Juki. Dana N. Wiener, Magna Cum Laude. Joseph M. Palencia Jr. Bienvenido Perez Jr., Cum Laude. Cardona Lynn Esquire, Cum Laude. A. Carr-Waschen. C. M. O'Brien, Cum Laude. Free Thomas Waltime, Magna Cum Laude. Ben Provencher, Magna Cum Laude. Charlene Elva Pratt, Magna Cum Laude. Mr. Patrick J. O'Connor. Sarah A. Gotti, Cum Laude. Andy Tejesus de Marais, Cum Laude. Steven C. Kessinger. R. Kelly. Kevin Michael McDonald. Melissa Slaughter, Esquire, Cum Laude. Sean Philip Jingerich. Jackson Raymond Schimpke, Magna Cum Laude. J. Espinal. Jennifer Santana. Megan Brett McCoy. Michelle Diane Lange. Andrea Nelson Esquire. Gregory J. Caruba. Susan Vanny. Adam Gregory Northrop, Cum Laude. Amanda Desimone Coursaro. Garrett M. Barosh. Todd Joseph Rose, Magna Cum Laude. Melissa N. Wood. Christopher J. Kerner. Justin McGill. Darnay Miriam Wells. Erlyn Rinaldo Rolgo. Yad Alvarez, Cum Laude. Jonathan Graw. Ansu, C. Bianco, Magna Cum Laude. Brett Michael Rosen. Travis James DeCosta. John Sylvain Bang McCone. James McCutcheon. Lexa Antoinette Marino, Summa Cum Laude. C. Joseph Fogarty, Cum Laude. John Charles Madlin. Christopher Anthony Saliba. Troy Schumann, Cum Laude. Samantha K. Pierce. Elizabeth Ann Hackley. Brendan James Wright. Kayla S. O'Connor, Cum Laude. Lauren Elizabeth Campbell, Cum Laude. Melissa E. Diffley. Nicole Janine Polacostro. Michael Joseph Smitsky. Robert Rubinaccio. Jay Doivich Jr. Christopher Paul Quig. Todd Lewis Glendinning. Michael Colby Burke. Christina Marie Saliburks. Ladies and gentlemen, the class of 2015. At the conclusion of the ceremony, we welcome all of you to the law school for refreshments and the chance to informally continue this celebration. But before we close, I want you, the class of 2015, to know that you will be missed.  We don't want you to go. But I understand that it is us not you who have decided to stay in law school forever.  I wish for each of you health, happiness, peace and satisfying, meaningful work.  Take good care. Thank you. I would ask that the audience remain seated until the platform party and the graduates have filed out. Thank you.


A woman has pleaded guilty to her role in the decapitation of a hibbing man. 23-year-old Kaleen Greeninger of Grand Rapids is expected to be sentenced to roughly 30 years in prison in connection with the death of 20-year-old David Haman of Hibbing. As part of her plea agreement, she'll also have to testify against 36-year-old Joseph Thorson of Deer River. Thorson is charged with decapitating Haman in June after the woman told Thorson that Haman raped her. Authorities say Greeninger was in Haman's car near Ball Club when Thorson and Haman got out and Thorson hit Haman with a baseball bat, stabbed him, and beheaded him with a machete. Greeninger led authorities to Haman's body and head. If you've enjoyed this segment of Lakeland News, please consider making a tax-deductible contribution to Lakeland Public Television.


This is a very short essay that I wrote about habits my goal was to Try and completely summarize everything. I know about habits pretty much everything in as short of a text as possible So here goes Consistency is the hidden factor behind any true success not effort not willpower or even Intensity the key is consistency Just as you cannot build an empire in One big move or an amazing body with one good workout or even 30 Some would argue that you can do both in just a few months But even short-term success no matter how amazing it appears will not last without consistency We have all been taught the wrong things about habits from people who don't even know how to create and maintain them themselves When people said habits When people say habits they put unrealistic demands on themselves and end up giving up sooner or later Always remember when setting up your goals if you're not 100% sure you'll be able to do them every single day That means you're gonna quit sooner or later When setting your habits you must focus on the minimal results required Not the desired Results always ask yourself What is the minimal amount of effort that I can commit 100% of the time to do without any exception for this habit So if you want to start working out commit to five or ten minutes every day Which will probably mean that there's no way you'll fail on your habit again, the keyword here is minimal minimal effort Nobody says that you can't do more than five or ten minutes every day But that is the minimum that you must do every single day If you miss your effort target that day either Accidentally or by choosing to miss it Don't try to make it up the next day For example, if you come home tired because it's late and you don't want to work out Even though you Want to do it you choose not to do it Don't promise yourself to do it twice as hard tomorrow Because when tomorrow comes you'll be twice as likely not to go to the gym because you've already done it once and in addition to skipping it and Basically, whatever reason you had to skip it being relevant today as well You also promise to do twice as much which makes it Even more hard to do it Case in point if you skip today, please just forgive yourself It's gone and there's no point in trying to make it up tomorrow So as you've probably noticed the key to building habits is not effort or willpower The key is being humble in the estimation of how much effort you can give every day and Also forgiving For the mistakes you've made and the times you've lost Remember small actions will soon grow into massive momentum and results The small plant you water every day Will soon turn into a massive tree This is how you build habits and this is how you build consistency and as you know Consistency is the key to success