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Emily Lutz graduated in 2011 with a double major in Political Science/Great Ideas and a double minor in Human Rights/Spanish. At º¬Ð߲ݴ«Ã½, she also danced for UNB Dance, sat on the executive for the Political Science Society, travelled to Boston and Singapore for Model United Nations, and took courses in Avila, Spain.

Now the deputy mayor of Kings County, NS, she addressed first-year students during the 2017 Welcome Week Commencement Ceremony.
 
Here’s part of what she had to say about choosing º¬Ð߲ݴ«Ã½!

University was an opportunity to get to know what I really wanted. I discovered that it wasn’t about becoming a different person, but strengthening and focusing on the parts of yourself that make you an individual. My time at º¬Ð߲ݴ«Ã½ helped me discover what I wanted to give the world, and gave me the confidence and knowledge to know how best to do it.
 
There is something special about earning a liberal arts degree. To see an education solely as the means to a job is the wrong way to look at an education. My degree gave me a tool box, one that empowers me to think differently about the world and my role in it.
 
My degree also taught me how to value the truth. Now, more than ever, we need to believe in the power of words and truth. You cannot have good decision making without critical thought, good research, knowledge of history, and diligent fact-checking.
 
Finally, my education empowered me to recognize the shortcomings in the governance of my community. I never dreamt I would enter politics but it was a series of timely decisions and a little luck that got my name on the ballot to help change my community.
 
I was able to succeed because my university experience helped me to become articulate, efficient, and even multi-task (while running a farm and raising a family).
 
Scientists, engineers, and business people make discoveries, create life-changing technology, and redefine the way we live our lives every day. But without historians, sociologists, and philosophers to guide us through fast-paced development, we will fail to navigate it for the benefit of all. Without policy analysts, criminologists, and psychologists, we cannot contextualize how innovation can and will impact us.
 
Without liberal arts, we will fail to challenge the structures of society that keep us from moving forward in an equal, just, and humane way. The world needs more people with a liberal arts education, and to be honest, we needed them yesterday.
 
I have three years left as a municipal politician, three years to make an impact. You have four years left here at St. Thomas. Each and every experience you have here is a tool for your tool kit, and I promise you’ll be using it for the rest of your life.