As we fondly look back on commencement season, invited speakers’ shared words of wisdom ring true. For instance, NASA Astronaut Zena Cardman told UNC Chapel Hill’s Class of 2024, “In times of uncertainty and discomfort, choosing optimism and humor can change your whole mood in an instant. More importantly, it can lift an entire group. The effect you have on others is one of your most potent gifts. Your impact on the world comes from small moments like that one, simple daily choices integrated over a lifetime.”
Neil deGrasse Tyson, director of the Hayden Planetarium, told Kean University (NJ) graduates, "Make decisions in the interest of our health, our wealth, our security, so that subsequent generations can look back on you, on us, and be proud of the decisions we have made and not ashamed of them."
Read more commencement commentary here.