No matter how busy Allan H. “Bud” Selig (BS’56, History and Political Science) gets, the Commissioner of Major League Baseball still makes time for University of Wisconsin-Madison students.
Selig, who plans to write his memoirs on campus after his retirement, treasures his trips to Madison — particularly when they involve interacting with undergraduate students, who he says always impress him. Selig had that chance Tuesday, when he spoke to a group of first- and second-year students at Dejope Hall.
He also took a brief break between a tour of the impressive new residence hall, which opened in Aug. 2012, and his lecture to reflect on his ongoing relationship with his alma mater, his memories of campus and the value of his liberal arts education. An edited transcript of that conversation follows.
Q: You've endowed a chair that will support a new faculty position in history focusing on the relationship between sports and society. What makes sports so important that they should be studied and taught here?
BS:“People should really understand how important baseball and sports in general have been to society. While you often will hear some negatives, the truth of the matter is if you study the history, they've been a very constructive force in society. We have the latest example, the movie ‘42’ with Jackie Robinson, which is really a great American story and I’m proud of baseball for being an active participant. And that’s the kind of thing I hope we’ll study with this chair.”
Q: Why have you made it a priority to remain connected to the university?
BS:“I loved my four years here. I thought I was coming back to be a history professor, so I was going to spend more time here. But I made a different career choice.”
Q: It worked out pretty well …
BS:“Well, that’s what everybody tells me when I say that. But I got a great education here and am very proud of my education and proud of this institution, which is really one of the great institutions in America.”
Q: What do you enjoy about speaking to undergraduate students?
BS:“I love doing it, because it gives me a great insight to what kids are thinking, and, frankly, I enjoy this a great deal.”
Q: Was there an overriding lesson that you took away from your time as a student here?
BS:“History was a great teacher for me. I think it gave me a great overall education, which has helped me enormously as I've moved on.”
Q: Do you have a favorite spot on campus?
BS:“I have a lot of them. … Everything about it, just driving up today, seeing Bascom Hall, everything about it just brought back memories. I looked at old Science Hall — I used to go there and study at night. I also went to the Historical Society and studied. I have really great memories.”
Q: If I told 22-year-old Bud Selig that he would go on to become Commissioner of Major League Baseball, what would he say to me?
BS:“ You've got to be kidding me. Never could have imagined it in my wildest dreams. And kids ask me that. In fact, the last time I was here they asked me that. No way, I would have said.”