Academic Convocation reawakens a Carthage tradition

Professor Kevin Crosby discusses the thought process that led to some of the greatest modern innovations during an opening lecture at the Carthage Academic Convocation on Aug. 27, 2025.

This fall, Carthage College held a special convocation that resumed a singular tradition from a generation earlier and welcomed hundreds of new students into the academic community on the opening day of classes.

The Carthage Academic Convocation took place Aug. 27 in A. F. Siebert Chapel. As members of the record-setting first-year class embarked on their intellectual journeys, faculty and student speakers provided a gentle push.

In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the College held an annual convocation featuring a lecture on “The Aims of Education.” Carthage returned to that theme to ceremonially open the 2025-26 year, with Professor Kevin Crosby picking up the mantle.

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Using everyday examples like zippers and toilets, he gave a lively talk urging the newcomers to embrace the discomfort and confusion that accompany true learning. Borrowing a metaphor from physics, the subject he has primarily taught, Prof. Crosby reminded students to burst the bubble of superficial understanding.

Basil Kiracofe ’27, president of Student Government, addresses first-year students at the Carthage Academic Convocation on Aug. 27, 2025. “Your job here is to break through that ‘surface tension’ — to push past the comfortable illusion that you understand things simply because you’re familiar with them,” he said. “Education should confuse you, delight you, and sometimes leave you cowering in the dark. It should take you outside your comfort zone, outside the bounds of the familiar.”

He also serves as Hedberg Distinguished Professor of Entrepreneurial Studies and directs the Wisconsin Space Grant Consortium, which is based on campus as part of NASA’s national network. For nearly two decades, Prof. Crosby and Carthage students have partnered with the space agency and leading companies to solve problems in the aerospace industry.

“The day will come when you realize you’ve been driving the bus without knowing how the brakes work,” Prof. Crosby told the first-year class. “Professional competence in any field requires seeing past the surface of the tools — both literal and conceptual — that you’ll use every day. And that is a kind of superpower.”

First-year students process to A. F. Siebert Chapel for the 2025 Carthage Academic Convocation as faculty and staff members cheer them on. Basil Kiracofe ’27, president of Student Government, shared valuable lessons from a Carthage journey that’s been filled with competitive injuries, changing career interests, and newfound passions.

“When you leave this convocation today, be willing to fully be part of the Firebird experience,” Basil advised the attendees. “Fall in love with your studies, find friends and professors who will support you in your journey, join clubs and organizations that will help you grow, and push yourself to be the best you can be. Carthage is a strong community that supports each other as we navigate our struggles.”

Faculty and staff members formed a cheering line to welcome the new students as they processed toward the chapel. The convocation also included welcome remarks from President John Swallow and musical selections performed by the Carthage Choir.