Distinguished guests, parents and family members, staff and students, I am honoured to have the opportunity to celebrate with you this evening.  Tonight we celebrate excellence!

According to the most notable source of information in the 21st century ---Wikipedia --- Excellence is a talent or quality, which is unusually good and so surpasses ordinary standards that it becomes a standard of performance itself.  The standard of excellence as defined by Alberta Education is student achievement that exceeds 80%.

 

Studies have shown that the most important way to achieve excellent performance is to practice. This achievement of excellence commonly requires approximately 10 years of dedication, comprising about 10,000 hours of effort.  So, award winners --- you have achieved excellence in your education over the past 12 years of your hard work!!

 

According to the famous educator, Aristotle: “Excellence is never an accident. It is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, and intelligent execution.  Excellence is an art won by training and habituation. We do not act rightly because we have virtue or excellence, but we rather have those because we have acted rightly. We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit.”

 

Therefore, I believe that excellence is the product of a special chemical reaction between four unique elements:

 

First, the element known as Opposition. 

In simple terms, the First Law of Thermodynamics states that you can’t get something for nothing!  The Second Law of Thermodynamics states that it is natural for systems to break down and become simpler.  These opposites are essential to achieving excellence!

 

Second, the element known as Repetition.

Habits are formed when we repeat our choices and get the attendant consequences.  If those choices are good ones, then we build our virtue or our strength of character.  The virtue generated allows successes to flow to us like a pipeline bringing ‘black gold’ to the refinery of excellence.

 

Third, the element known as Effort.

In physics, power is the amount of energy consumed or work done per unit of time.  For electrical energy, power is calculated by multiplying the square of the current by the resistance.  These formulae suggest that excellence requires work over time and movement against resistance!

 

Fourth, the element known as Sacrifice.

Mahatma Gandhi describes his version of the “Seven Deadly Sins --- as follows:

• Wealth without work

• Pleasure without conscience

• Science without humanity

• Knowledge without character

• Politics without principle

• Commerce without morality

• Worship without sacrifice.”

Giving up what is good for something that is better is only the beginning of what you have done.  Most of you have given up what is better for that which is the best.  And now you have become the best you can be --- so far!! 

 

These elements when combined chemically produce a new and vibrant compound:  ORES!  Since we live in an energy-rich province, it should be no surprise that excellence is a result of opposition, repetition, effort and sacrifice.  You are our precious metals, the glitter of Harry Ainlay!

 

I congratulate you on the amazing achievements of last year!  I look forward to hearing about future achievements as you take this new compound and apply it liberally to your current pursuits.

 

Thank you.