NUMBER OF GRADUATES: 126 degrees, 112 taking part in the ceremony

MAIN SPEAKER: Robert Young, founder and CEO of Lulu, a print-on-demand publisher, and co-founder of software firm Red Hat.

SHORT AND SWEET: Young used his Canadian inflection, a khaki baseball cap and some self-deprecation to add levity and brevity to the tradition-steeped proceedings. Clocking in at 12 minutes, Young joked "aboot" "being the dumbest kid in the room" throughout school. He also offered to treat new conferees to doughnuts at the nearby Krispy Kreme afterwards.

"It does beg the question, 'So how does the dumbest guy in the room get invited to be your commencement speaker?'"

He said his having three daughters might have inspired confidence among school leaders that Young knows how to galvanize women. Also, he has recently hired several Peace alumni to work for him. He encouraged new graduates to adopt the ABCs of his success: aligning their work with their interests, being a little bit better every day, and striving to improve the larger community.

Young noted that the key to leadership lies not in training or definition but in action.

"You see, the problem with leadership is the moment you think of yourself as a leader -- you aren't. The only person who actually is a leader is the person that other people want to follow -- not because they have to follow them. So you'll never know until after the fact whether you're a leader."

STUDENT SPEAKER: Classmates chose Sarah Heenan, a history major, to deliver remarks on their behalf. Heenan reminisced about picking a side of the room in a freshman dorm, ceaseless alarms from exit doors and the "persistent hum of hair dryers and showers" as women prepared to go out. She urged peers to look beyond appearances and assumptions in their lives.

"Don't venture through life as a mere shadow of someone else's dreams," she said. "Instead, wake up, find yourself and live your journey one step at a time."

MAYBE NEXT YEAR: Last year's ritual throwing of roses into the college fountain landed one onto the top tier. This year, no one's toss touched the top ledge. However, graduates did one better, stripping off their shoes and plunking themselves mid-shin into the cold water.

TRADITIONS: The rose comes in a small bouquet that graduates receive with their diplomas. In addition, the school gives each student a Bible, as it has since its first commencement in the mid-1800s. It is a vestige from the school's roots as a Presbyterian institution.

Graduates also reuse gowns from previous ceremonies. The sleeves are embroidered with the names and years of past graduates. Students often lobby to wear the same garb as a friend or family member, said Michael Hobbs, the school's director of communications.

NO FREE DOUGHNUTS, NO WORRIES:

Young wasn't on hand to follow through on his offer of free sweets when Luisa Moreno, 24, a psychology and anthropology major from Colombia, stopped by for a snack with an excited family in tow after the ceremony.

But Moreno said she will not hold it against Young, whose speech she called "the best in five years."

Attending Peace was "the best decision" she ever made, she said, because she loved the camaraderie and becoming close with professors.

"It was the best," said "Lou," as she is known on campus. "Whoever told you that living with all girls is bad is lying."