In delivering Robert Morris University’s 82nd commencement address May 5, Velma Montiero-Tribble, COO of the Alcoa Foundation, told graduates that in a world where individuals can broadcast their ideas across the globe in seconds via YouTube or MySpace, they can achieve anything if they remember that information alone does necessarily lead to knowledge or wisdom.

VELMA MONTIER0-TRIBBLE

Tribble passed on similar advice she heard from Maya Angelou, Colin Powell and her “little four-foot tall Portuguese grandmother” during her 30 years of international experience as a grant writer, manager, teacher, accountant and Peace Corps volunteer.

“The world is full of people who go straight from Park to Drive. But if more people paid attention to the gears in between, we’d all have a smoother ride,” she said. “Knowledge is like a garden. If it’s not cultivated, it can’t be harvested.”

In addition to Tribble’s address, the ceremony also included the awarding of an honorary doctorate to Former U.S. Treasury Secretary and Alcoa CEO Paul O’Neil.