On a hot June morning in 1963, graduating students, their families, and community members filled the John M. Reeves Athletic Center at American University to see President John F. Kennedy deliver what would become one of the most famous commencement addresses in history. The speech, which would become known as the “Strategy of Peace” address, also became, in retrospect, the premier foreign policy address of Kennedy’s presidency. Delivered just months before his assassination, Kennedy’s presence on the stage at American University would leave an indelible and lasting mark not only on the graduates listening but also on US foreign policy. 

June 10, 2023, marks the 60^th anniversary of Kennedy’s address at American University. In honor of this, we asked members of the SIS Class of 1963 and others who attended the commencement to share their memories of the address and reflect on the early years following the establishment of SIS.

The Class of 1963

The School of International Service was established by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1957, and the class of 1963 included the first 33 undergraduate students to complete four full years at the school.

“We were pioneers and trailblazers. We were essentially making history,” Anne Destabelle, SIS/BA ’63, said. “Dean Griffith even took the whole class for a weekend retreat in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. I believe that the whole experience as freshmen—and being part of this grand experiment—really bonded us. We were very close, and I still feel an incredible kinship with my classmates.”

Living and learning in DC during the Kennedy administration was a unique opportunity, and many SIS students attended events and speeches. Some even worked in connection with the campaign and subsequent administration.

“A close friend of mine started working for Kennedy’s presidential election campaign in 1960, and during the campaign, he helped organize an impromptu rally on campus,” said Bee Campbell, SIS/BA ’63. “When Kennedy was president, I even tried to go to the State of the Union address at the Capitol. We didn't get in, but we saw all these people that had been in the news, and it was just very impressive.”

Welcoming Kennedy to Campus

Leading up to Kennedy’s address, the campus was awash with excitement and anticipation of the president’s visit and what he might say in the speech. Kennedy had established himself as a masterful and eloquent speaker and a fierce proponent of peace in the face of unimaginable stress and tensions, including the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962.

“When we learned that our graduation speaker was going to be President Kennedy and that he might be giving a major foreign policy speech, there was much interest and speculation within SIS,” said Margaret Van Naerssen, SIS/BA ’63. “We were coming out of a real-life, historic crisis after Cuba, and we were being trained in international relations, so we were all very much attuned to what was going to be happening.”

Friends and family members of graduates traveled from across the country to attend the commencement, not only to cheer on their graduates but also to hear the president speak. SIS distinguished practitioner in residence Sherry Mueller, SIS/BA ’65, even chose to stay on campus after classes ended for the semester just to hear the president’s address.

“I called my mom and dad and told them that the president was going to be giving the commencement speech, so I'd like to stay late,” Mueller recalled. “I was a volunteer and handed out programs to parents and other guests of the graduates. I listened to the words very carefully as somebody majoring in international relations. This was the major foreign policy address of his whole administration, and I was particularly struck by his emphasis on making the world safe for diversity.”

On the day of the commencement ceremony, graduates and guests sat in the heat and the sun buzzing with anticipation as they waited for the president and his motorcade of limousines to arrive on campus. Before giving his address, President Kennedy was awarded an honorary Doctor of Civil Law degree by the president of American University, Dr. Hurst R. Anderson.

SIS professor emeritus Stephen D. Cohen, SIS/BA ’63, recalled both the remarkable heat and remarkable speaker at the ceremony: “My still-vivid recollections of JFK’s AU speech on June 10, 1963, fall into three segments. First, there was the excitement of anticipating having the president speak at my graduation on a day that corresponded with my 21st birthday. Second is the searing memory of the horrible heat and humidity of that afternoon. There was no air-conditioned arena; instead, the ceremony was held on the shadeless expanse of the athletic field. Sitting in black robes in the mid-afternoon of what felt like a 98-degree heat and 98% humidity Washington day was and still is one of the more challenging endurance tests I have experienced. My final memory of the speech sustains a unique feeling of pride. President Kennedy’s announcement of forthcoming negotiations with the Soviet Union to cease above-ground nuclear tests foreshadowed a historic turning point in pursuing detente between the two superpowers and a globally welcomed de-escalation of the nuclear arms race. However, there was no guarantee of success on that June day. It was only subsequent events that assured JFK’s speech at my graduation became a major historical event. And I was there.”

The “Strategy of Peace”

The Cuban Missile Crisis marked a peak of tensions between the US and the USSR, and Kennedy’s address came at a time when those memories were still fresh in the minds of the public. During the speech, Kennedy urged peace and understanding of the Soviet Union, a sentiment that seemed almost impossible to fathom just months earlier.

Kennedy highlighted three distinct actions that must be taken to pursue peace with the Soviet Union. The first was to examine our attitude toward peace itself. The second was to re-examine the national and the public collective attitude toward the USSR. The third was to re-assess the nation’s attitude toward the Cold War. By urging the public to introspectively reconsider their thoughts and pre-conceived notions, Kennedy made the possibility of lasting peace seem achievable in the American imagination.

Alongside Kennedy’s three points as part of his “Strategy of Peace,” he also announced two groundbreaking decisions regarding negotiations with the Soviet Union. The first was the announcement of high-level discussions in Moscow regarding the development of the Test Ban Treaty. The second was the declaration that the US would not conduct any nuclear tests in the atmosphere. These announcements showed Kennedy’s dedication to finding an amicable end to the Cold War and solidified his intent to create a world where “peace and freedom walk together.”

“I was a child of air raid drills, so maybe that led me to be a student of international relations, in hopes that I could help find some paths for peace,” Mimi Feinstein, SIS/BA ’63, said. “Sitting there that day, we were at a moment in history. It was not only hoping to eliminate nuclear testing and to move towards nuclear disarmament, but it was also a statement of the moral commitment to human rights throughout the world. ‘Peace and freedom walk together’ is one of the things he said that really resonated with me. Without one, you cannot have the other.”

Waging Peace in the World

Following Kennedy’s commencement address, the graduates headed out into the world inspired by the words they had heard from the president. They left SIS with hopes of making a difference and finding solutions to international problems. The alumni we spoke to went on to have careers in a wide variety of fields, including linguistics, humanitarian aid, social work, and international education. Many SIS graduates, including Campbell, went on to work internationally with the Peace Corps, which was established in 1961 by President Kennedy.

“I spent two years in Nigeria from 1964 to 1966, where I taught secondary school English and geography. I traveled around West Africa, and it was a very, very important experience in my life,” recalled Campbell.

Another 1963 graduate, Bill Reiford, was unable to attend his commencement and see the president speak because he was seeing his brother off on a ship to Europe. Although he was not present, Reiford felt the impact of his SIS education and experiences throughout his career: “I have been aware over the years that it was my graduate work at SIS that provided the real foundation for my work, including as a US and international civil servant and as one of the founders of The Field School in Washington, DC.”

Words for a New Generation

The words and messages found in Kennedy’s 1963 speech were groundbreaking when delivered and are cemented in history as a call to peace during one of the most troubled times in our nation’s history. Although the Soviet Union doesn’t exist today, new conflicts have arisen, and lessons from Kennedy’s address are as relevant today as they were in 1963. Waging peace is a job that is never done, and it is dependent on each person to prioritize peace in their daily lives.

Kennedy ended his now historic address with words that ring true to this day and serve as an example for both individuals and the nation: “But we shall also do our part to build a world of peace where the weak are safe and the strong are just. We are not helpless before that task or hopeless of its success. Confident and unafraid, we labor on—not toward a strategy of annihilation but toward a strategy of peace.”