portrait of a graduate
Paul Guibao ‘91 When Paul Guibao ’91 visited Lausanne for the first time after graduating from Rhodes College and Emory University School of Law, he was curious about whether he would still connect with his alma mater that seemed to have changed so much since he attended. Although the school had grown significantly, he found Lausanne had maintained the character, liberal arts approach and small class sizes he so appreciated as a student. This was a relief to the man who as a teenager had sought out the school for its empowerment of the individual.
education programs in Memphis. This early introduction to the arts gave Paul a perspective that did not always coincide with traditional educational mindsets.
Paul had always been surrounded by the arts as a child. His family had a great appreciation for the theatre and Paul had grown up involved with The Arthur F. & Alice E. Adams Foundation, through which his family supported local arts and
Paul shares, “Everyone needs a little something out there to inspire them if they are going to achieve any sense of greatness.” His early introduction to the arts and the inspiration he found at Lausanne and Rhodes helped expose him “to the
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Prior to Lausanne, Paul had attended another local high school that he says was “trying to shove me into a niche that wasn’t me.” Unhappy with the lack of a theatre program, Paul did a little soul searching and, with the permission of his parents, applied to Lausanne Collegiate School of his own accord. Inspired by Lausanne’s reputation as a school where people could be themselves, Paul set out to discover what an education at Lausanne could offer him. Paul directly credits the rich humanities courses at Lausanne, the inspiration of his teachers and his experiences on the Lausanne stage for empowering his choice to attend Rhodes College and later law school at Emory, where he would go on to apply his global perspective and thrill of performance to the courtroom. “The study of humanities is what enabled me to see beyond myself,” says Paul. “In addition, I don’t think those things would have occurred without being involved in the theatre or without going beyond just getting a grade. There was something about the subject that created a desire to learn.”