MIDDLETOWN, CONN. — Snipers crouched on roofs and Secret Service agents patrolled the field as Wesleyan University's class of 2008 participated Sunday in a commencement ceremony few attendees are likely to forget.
Under a clear blue sky, Sen. Barack Obama stood before the 737 graduating seniors and 120 doctoral graduates. Thousands of visitors blanketing a hill overlooking the ceremony rose to their feet in applause. Many had no connection to the school, and no tickets, but they cheered along with Wesleyan families and friends.
"At a time of war, we need you to work for peace," Obama (D-Ill.) told the graduates. "At a time of inequality, we need you to work for opportunity. At a time of so much cynicism and so much doubt, we need you to make us believe again. That's your task, class of 2008."
Last week, no one here could have expected the graduation would turn into such a spectacle. Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) had been the scheduled speaker. But when he was hospitalized last week -- and was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor -- Obama, the Democratic presidential front-runner, was tapped to take his place.
As the news spread across campus Thursday via instant messaging, blog posts, texting, cellphone and Facebook, people began selling their commencement tickets on Craigslist for hundreds of dollars.
Visitors from across the country arrived, carting blankets, umbrellas, folding chairs and picnic lunches. A young man showed up in a Dukakis T-shirt, and others wore "Yes We Can" buttons. People lined up to snap photos next to a life-size cardboard cutout of Obama. Wesleyan officials estimated that there were 25,000 people in the crowd.
Graduates in red caps and gowns recorded the event on camera phones, amazed at the commotion surrounding a school that rarely receives national recognition.
"No other class is going to be able to live up" to this, said Tania Serrano, 22, who graduated in English and Latin American studies.
'Center of the world'
During the commencement ceremony, Obama passed along a message from Kennedy: " 'To all those praying for my return to good health, I offer my heartfelt thanks. And to any who'd rather have a different result, I say, don't get your hopes up just yet.' "
Kennedy's stepdaughter, Caroline Raclin, is in the 2008 graduating class, and his wife, Vicki, was in the audience. His son Edward Kennedy Jr. is among Wesleyan's alumni.
