Below is a transcript of Bob Powell's 2009 Fall Convocation speech:

As the Chair of the Davis Division of the faculty Academic Senate, I am pleased to welcome our faculty and to provide a few brief comments. And to begin, I am delighted to welcome one of our newest faculty members, Chancellor Linda Katehi!

It is certainly no news that the upcoming year poses challenges for UC Davis. But our topic today looks far beyond the next year – our concern is our second century.

It is you, the faculty, who will be the vanguard of those who will transform our campus during its second century. We will chart a course to ensure that we end this new century as changed as we are today from the university farm that began one hundred years ago. The question is, I believe, how can we remain true to the values and qualities that we hold dear.

As faculty we play a unique role in setting the standards for scholarship, dialogue and human relations. I believe that we can shape our future by emphasizing four essential qualities: civility, community, collaboration and creativity.

Civility
In all times, but especially now, in these most difficult times, civility must be the hallmark of our daily conversations – not only among ourselves but especially with our staff and our students.

Community
At UC Davis community is not something to be discussed, but something that we live - every day. Davis – the campus and the city - is a place where students and teachers come together - both formally and informally – to share in the common purpose of learning and scholarship.

Collaboration
For many of us, our scholarship relies on the strong collaborative environment at UC Davis which has led to our being the place to do interdisciplinary research.

Creativity
And finally, as with our past, our future will be defined by a highly creative faculty pursuing the frontiers of knowledge.

A century ago a simple compass, with its four directions, was used by our campus planners as they laid out roads and identified the locations of our first buildings. In a similar way, I believe that Civility, Community, Collaboration and Creativity can be OUR four directions that will guide UC Davis as we plan for a sustainable and transformative century. It is up to the faculty to set the tone for civil discourse to build community with staff and students, to promote collaborations among colleagues and to create the new knowledge that inspires us all.

Thank you and, again, welcome.