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ĢƵ hosted Commencement ceremonies over two weeks celebrating the academic accomplishments of about 600 graduate, undergraduate, doctorate and veterinary medicine students.
During Saturday’s exercises, the university hosted U.S. Rep. Shomari Figures (D-AL) as the undergraduate Commencement speaker. He told the graduates that as they are marking this transition into their careers, to keep a few things in mind: take care of yourself, go to the doctor and try to stay in shape; whatever motivates you in life, be passionate about it and act like you want it; ask yourself who you want to impress and that search for validation is an important motivator; never forget where you come from as those experiences helped shape you; and treat people right because you never know who you will need to help you in the future.
“As you travel your own journey, know that success is not about what you learned here,” he said. “It’s about the characteristics and habits you developed that define who you are as a person throughout your life.”
As Dr. Mark A. Brown, President and CEO, introduced Rep. Figures, he outlined the challenge that came with his being elected to represent the second district, which includes ĢƵ.
“One of the lessons that I hope you have learned at Tuskegee is that when there is not a way, you make a way,” Dr. Brown said. “When a chair is not at the table for you, you bring your own chair, and as a Tuskegee graduate, you feel comfortable sitting there, because you should be there.
“You may have been told that certain fields of study and complex studies were for others, but not for you,” he said. “Today, your presence assures me that that was not true in the past. It was not true today and it will not be true in the future.
“Before my eyes, before your eyes, lie the scientists the teachers, the chemists, the engineers, the aviators, the agriculturists, the nurses, the economists, the military warriors, the cybersecurity leaders, the information technologists, the business tycoons, those who will be elected to office, some of which will be theologians and they don’t even know it yet,” said Dr. Brown. “All of them are in this audience today. Be proud of who you are.”
“To have completed this journey or any journey is special, however, you have completed this journey as a graduate of historic ĢƵ,” said Dr. Brown. “This means you not only commence to the next stage of your life, but you use this newly created knowledge to take on the world’s most complex problems. That’s what is expected of a Tuskegee graduate. You will not simply blend into the world; you will change it for the better.”
Saturday’s ceremony also celebrated Tuskegee students who had been commissioned earlier in the week as second lieutenants in the Air Force, Marine Corps, Army and Ensigns in the Navy. Their pinning ceremony and first salute was one of three on Friday. Nursing majors participated in the capping and pinning ceremony and engineering students participated in the Order of the Engineer ceremony.
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