More than 2,000 people filled Wait Chapel to hear former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice’s “Rethinking Success” keynote address about the state of America and the role of higher education. For junior Taylor Parsons (’13), a classical studies and philosophy double major, her advice struck a chord.

Charlie Ergen, the chairman of satellite broadcaster Dish Network Corporation and EchoStar Communications Corporation, will deliver the commencement address on May 21. Jonathan T.M. Reckford, the CEO of Habitat for Humanity International, will deliver the baccalaureate address.

Provost emeritus Ed Wilson assumed the posture of Janus, looking to the past and future, as he addressed the audience gathered Friday evening for the concluding event of Words Awake’s inaugural day. With characteristic clarity and elegance, Wilson wove together texts and reflections that joined the rich humus of Wake Forest’s literary traditions with the achievements of contemporary and the promise of future writers.

More than 50 alumni writers returned to campus for the first Words Awake! conference last weekend. Find out more about how the writers interacted with students, the campus community and local schools, and learn about the first class of the WFU Writers Hall of Fame.

Words Awake!, the three-day symposium showcasing Wake Forest’s literary legacy, launched with a spectacular start Friday evening when Tom Hayes (’79) premiered his documentary film, “Editor Uncut,” about his father, Harold Hayes (’48), who as editor of Esquire (1963-1973) marshaled the talent that established the magazine as the disquieting mirror of its age.

As I listened to Roald Hoffmann’s introduction, I was mesmerized by his ability to excel in chemistry, poetry and philosophy. In Hoffmann’s hour-long address as part of the Oakley R. Vail Lecture Series, I learned how these different fields, and really any fields, can intertwine.

The student-run festival includes a free week-long series of film screenings and workshops and ends on March 23 with a keynote address by Morgan Spurlock, the director of “Super Size Me.”

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas visited the School of Law, meeting with students, faculty and alumni, visiting a class and lecturing on professional responsibility. He was interviewed by Marc Rigsby (JD ’12) in front of a 350-plus audience in the Worrell Professional Center.

First-year student Micheal Green (’15) says his experience as a student in the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Program prepared him for the rigors of college. The Washington Post’s Jay Mathews will speak March 7 in Wait Chapel about the program.

Eboo Patel, founder of the Interfaith Youth Core, emphasized the importance of bringing together people of all religious identities to form a bridge from religious intolerance and misunderstanding to a new reality focused on the common good.