96 “VSU has so much going for it …,” he said, referring to the university’s word-class record of academic, service, research, athletic, and creative excellence. “But if we’re honest, we have our challenges, too,” he said. “… South Georgia continues to see demographic trends that rightfully scare us all, and the jobs lost in the Great Recession have returned at a rate that is far behind other parts of the state. All that has led a well-regarded economic think-tank to label all but two of the counties in our assigned 41-county region as ‘distressed.’ “Here on campus, many of you have told me that an instability of both leadership and purpose created challenges, too. A significant drop in enrollment in the first half of this decade led to budget shortfalls and painful cuts. Retention, progression, and graduation rates continue to lag behind peer institutions. Perhaps worst of all, many of you have told me that VSU has failed to fully embrace its role as South Georgia’s flagship institution. Quite frankly, many of you have wondered — aloud to me — if we’re capable of all that. Maybe, you hinted, that’s just a pipe dream. Maybe, it will never be our time. “But I believe that my story provides an example of what can be. … with the help of many, I climbed out of the car that was my home and climbed onto a college commencement stage to receive my degree, and stories like that should show us all that even the most trying of obstacles can be overcome. You know it’s true.” Referring to those gathered in Whitehead Auditorium, Carvajal said he suspected many of those listening to him talk had overcome their own obstacles, proving to others that anything is possible with help, perseverance, optimism, and a strong work ethic. Resilience can be built over time. “… if we channel our collective energies behind a common vision, there is nothing that we cannot accomplish,” he said. “… no matter the challenge, there comes a time when all things become possible.” “There is … a buzz in our collective air,” he continued. “There is an energy that is so thick it can be held — and it is time to make the most of that momentum and become all that we can be together. That’s right. Now is our time.” How should every member of VSU’s Blazer Nation family respond to those who say that its research efforts do not matter, that the questions being studied by the faculty and students on campus make little difference in people’s lives? “… you tell them what it means to be an applied research university,” he said. “Tell them of a place where some of the best minds in their respective disciplines will willingly tackle the biggest questions facing our region, thus paving the way for life-changing improvements. You tell them that, at VSU, what we do has the potential to cure disease, transform K-12 education, and make South Georgia’s businesses fully competitive on the world stage. That’s right. You tell them that now is our time.” How should every member of VSU’s Blazer Nation family respond to those who say that higher education is slow to change, that VSU may never move beyond talk and truly improve student success?