A Graduation Speech is very important. here you can find a finest Graduation Speech examples which will help you to write for your self. Giving a meaningful and motivational graduation speech is a big responsibility. This is your chance to inspire hundreds, maybe even thousands of individuals to move confidently into the next leg of their lives.
Being selected as a commencement speaker is a great recognition, but the responsibility can be intimidating. How do you know what kind of message will hit home for the graduates at this point in their lives? How do you make your message stand out from other words of wisdom that the graduating class has heard before?
Fortunately, there are many incredible graduation speeches from which you can pull information. We’ve gathered 15 of the best graduation speech examples here to make your research and brainstorming process easier. A little studying can give you ideas for the perfect graduation speech topic and help you write your speech efficiently.
Take note of the flow and structure of the examples, and let them guide you in creating your own graduation speech outline. Remember to practice your speech and memorize the bulk of it so you’re able to deliver with confidence. With a strong theme and plenty of practice, you’re sure to gain the audience’s attention and leave them inspired.
Graduation Speech Examples 1
By Neil Postman
Having sat through two dozen or so graduation speeches, I have naturally wondered why they are so often so bad. One reason, of course, is that the speakers are chosen for their eminence in some field, and not because they are either competent speakers or gifted writers. Another reason is that the audience is eager to be done with all ceremony so that it can proceed to some serious reveling. Thus any speech longer than, say, fifteen minutes will seem tedious, if not entirely pointless. There are other reasons as well, including the difficulty of saying something inspirational without being banal. Here I try my hand at writing a graduation speech, and not merely to discover if I can conquer the form. This is precisely what I would like to say to young people if I had their attention for a few minutes.
If you think my graduation speech is good, I hereby grant you permission to use it, without further approval or credit to me, should you be in an appropriate situation.
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Members of the faculty, parents, guests, and graduates have no fear. I am well aware that on a day of such high excitement, what you require, first and foremost, of any speaker is brevity. I shall not fail you in this respect. There are exactly eighty-five sentences in my speech, four of which you have just heard. It will take me about twelve minutes to speak all of them and I must tell you that such economy was not easy for me to arrange, because I have chosen as my topic the complex subject of your ancestors. Not, of course, your biological ancestors, about whom I know nothing, but your spiritual ancestors, about whom I know a little. To be specific, I want to tell you about two groups of people who lived many years ago but whose influence is still with us. They were very different from each other, representing opposite values and traditions. I think it is appropriate for you to be reminded of them on this day because, sooner than you know, you must align yourself with the spirit of one or the spirit of the other.
The first group lived about 2,500 years ago in the place which we now call Greece, in a city they called Athens. We do no know as much about their origins as we would like. But we do know a great deal about their accomplishments. They were, for example, the first people to develop a complete alphabet, and therefore they became the first truly literate population on earth. They invented the idea of political democracy, which they practiced with a vigor that puts us to shame. They invented what we call philosophy. And they also invented what we call logic and rhetoric. They came very close to inventing what we call science, and one of them—Democritus by name—conceived of the atomic theory of matter 2,300 years before it occurred to any modern scientist. They composed and sang epic poems of unsurpassed beauty and insight. And they wrote and performed plays that, almost three millennia later, still have the power to make audiences laugh and weep. They even invented what, today, we call the Olympics, and among their values none stood higher than that in all things one should strive for excellence. They believed in reason. They believed in beauty. They believed in moderation. And they invented the word and the idea which we know today as ecology.
About 2,000 years ago, the vitality of their culture declined and these people began to disappear. But not what they had created. Their imagination, art, politics, literature, and language spread all over the world so that, today, it is hardly possible to speak on any subject without repeating what some Athenian said on the matter 2,500 years ago.
The second group of people lived in the place we now call Germany, and flourished about 1,700 years ago. We call them the Visigoths, and you may remember that your sixth-or seventh-grade teacher mentioned them. They were spectacularly good horsemen, which is about the only pleasant thing history can say of them. They were marauders—ruthless and brutal. Their language lacked subtlety and depth. Their art was crude and even grotesque. They swept down through Europe destroying everything in their path, and they overran the Roman Empire. There was nothing a Visigoth liked better than to burn a book, desecrate a building, or smash a work of art. From the Visigoths, we have no poetry, no theater, no logic, no science, no humane politics.
Like the Athenians, the Visigoths also disappeared, but not before they had ushered in the period known as the Dark Ages. It took Europe almost a thousand years to recover from the Visigoths.
Now, the point I want to make is that the Athenians and the Visigoths still survive, and they do so through us and the ways in which we conduct our lives. All around us—in this hall, in this community, in our city—there are people whose way of looking at the world reflects the way of the Athenians, and there are people whose way is the way of the Visigoths. I do not mean, of course, that our modern-day Athenians roam abstractly through the streets reciting poetry and philosophy, or that the modern-day Visigoths are killers. I mean that to be an Athenian or a Visigoth is to organize your life around a set of values. An Athenian is an idea. And a Visigoth is an idea. Let me tell you briefly what these ideas consist of.
To be an Athenian is to hold knowledge and, especially, the quest for knowledge in high esteem. To contemplate, to reason, to experiment, to question—these are, to an Athenian, the most exalted activities a person can perform. To a Visigoth, the quest for knowledge is useless unless it can help you to earn money or to gain power over other people.
To be an Athenian is to cherish language because you believe it to be humankind’s most precious gift. In their use of language, Athenians strive for grace, precision, and variety. And they admire those who can achieve such skill. To a Visigoth, one word is as good as another, one sentence indistinguishable from another. A Visigoth’s language aspires to nothing higher than the cliché.
To be an Athenian is to understand that the thread which holds civilized society together is thin and vulnerable; therefore, Athenians place great value on tradition, social restraint, and continuity. To an Athenian, bad manners are acts of violence against the social order. The modern Visigoth cares very little about any of this. The Visigoths think of themselves as the center of the universe. Tradition exists for their own convenience, good manners are an affectation and a burden, and history is merely what is in yesterday’s newspaper.
To be an Athenian is to take an interest in public affairs and the improvement of public behavior. Indeed, the ancient Athenians had a word for people who did not. The word was idioets, from which we get our word “idiot.” A modern Visigoth is interested only in his own affairs and has no sense of the meaning of community.
And finally, to be an Athenian is to esteem the discipline, skill, and taste that are required to produce enduring art. Therefore, in approaching a work of art, Athenians prepare their imagination through learning and experience. To a Visigoth, there is no measure of artistic excellence except popularity. What catches the fancy of the multitude is good. No other standard is respected or even acknowledged by the Visigoth.
Now, it must be obvious what all of this has to do with you. Eventually, like the rest of us, you must be on one side or the other. You must be an Athenian or a Visigoth. Of course, it is much harder to be an Athenian, for you must learn how to be one, you must work at being one, whereas we are all, in a way, natural-born Visigoths. That is why there are so many more Visigoths than Athenians. And I must tell you that you do not become an Athenian merely by attending school or accumulating academic degrees. My father-in-law was one of the most committed Athenians I have ever known, and he spent his entire adult life working as a dress cutter on Seventh Avenue in New York City. One the other hand, I know physicians, lawyers, and engineers who are Visigoths of unmistakable persuasion. And I must also tell you, as much in sorrow as in shame, that at some of our great universities, perhaps even this one, there are professors of whom we may fairly say they are closet Visigoths. And yet, you must not doubt for a moment that a school, after all is essentially an Athenian idea. There is a direct link between the cultural achievements of Athens and what the faculty at this university is all about. I have no difficulty imagining that Plato, Aristotle, or Democritus would be quite at home in our classrooms. A Visigoth would merely scrawl obscenities on the wall.
And so, whether you were aware of it or not, the purpose of your having been at this university was to give you a glimpse of the Athenian way, to interest you in the Athenian way. We cannot know on this day how many of you will choose that way and how many will not. You are young and it is not given to us to see your future. But I will tell you this, with which I will close: I can wish for you no higher compliment than that in the future it will be reported that among your graduating class the Athenians mightily outnumbered the Visigoths.
Thank you, and congratulations.
Graduation Speech Examples 2
Graduation Speech
Regis High School
Christian S. Monsalve
June 6th, 2009
Mr. Domino, Chairman of the Board, Fr. Judge, President of Regis, Dr. Tocchet, Principal of Regis, Ms. Ross, Assistant Principal of Regis, administration, faculty, parents, families, guests, and my brothers of the class of 2009
I never thought this day would come. I had always imagined it as something way far off in my mind so I must say that I am extremely delighted to be here today. There is no way for me to fully sum up, in a few minutes, our experiences at Regis. To begin, I would like to take you all back in time. Remember those first days of Regis? What a transition! It was definitely the most difficult transition of my life. It tested everything I had, emotionally, academically, socially, and physically. We were all so used to being at the top of our respective classes and having everything come easy for us. And all of a sudden we were thrust into a new school, with new people, in a city where many of us were not completely comfortable. I remember coming home after that first week of school crying to my mother. I remember telling her, “Mami, I feel like an old guy working from 9 to 5. I don’t know if I can do this.” But that marvelous lady whom I call my mother encouraged me. She told me that I could do it. I am certain that was the case with so many of our classmates’ parents. And just look at where we are here today.
Honestly, I had doubts about having come to Regis up until my junior year. I continuously asked myself whether I had made the right choice. I wondered how different my life would have been had I gone to a typical high school. Would I have had a different circle of friends? Would I have been as New York City savy? Would I have been at the point I am in life today? But most importantly: Would there have been more women in my life? Well, who knows? What’s past is past and no one will ever know. But I stand before you all here today convinced and completely confident that I made the right choice.
There are many people who we must thank for having the opportunity of being here today. I would like to begin with our fellow classmates. I cannot explain fully in words what all of you mean to me. With you I’ve shared some of the most wonderful and satisfying experiences. I can see myself as a grandfather one day telling my grandchildren the many things I did with all of you. I already know some of the anecdotes I’m going to tell my future rugrats. I am going to tell them about the times Joe Cherian and I would go to Central Park during freshman year to develop our skills in the very fine art of flirtation. We weren’t very successful. But it wasn’t my fault. I am going to tell them about the time my dear classmate and friend Cameron Kemal took me to my first ever Yankees game. I am going to tell them about the walks to midtown with Andraows Chiti, Tommy Dewick, and Bobby Nguyen. I am going to tell them about my wonderful memories of SLACS, of those freshman year dances, the games of One Touch with Keith Calix and Brendan Smyth, the times Sebastian Polanco would try to convince me to work out with him, the moments I was awed by Phil Gillen’s public speaking abilities, and of this amazing and inspirational retreat by the name of Quest. It was an honor to be there with you guys. I am going to speak of the amazing nights I had at the mother son dances and of Phillippe and Demtrios’s calls of BLOP throughout the hallways. I am going to tell them of Mario Gorz’s shows and tremendous talents in the back of sophomore year history. I’m sorry, Mr. Anselme. I’ll speak of stories of the times Anthony Errante would brag to Mike Perez about just how muscular he was. And of course I’ll speak of those times during sophomore year on the soccer team when we were unstoppable and we would pregame to Kelly Clarkson’s voice on the bus. I’ll tell them of the French Exchange program and those incredible and endless nights in the streets of Paris and countryside of Champange-Ardenne with Tom Jarus, Tomasz Otlowski, and Alex Nevitt. I’ll definitely tell them about Austin Moukattaf and his unique stories. I won’t be able to tell them who was the best dressed member of our class because I was never able to decide between Demetrios Elias, Ben Singleton, Justin Hunte, and Ryan Escobedo. But I will be able to tell them that one of the most enjoyable times for me was the night of our prom. That was an amazing night that I will remember for the rest of my life. How could I forget Matt Colon’s dazzling white tuxedo or that dance contest with Ismael Polanco, even though I was robbed. There is no way that P. Diddy can ever top a prom like that. I don’t know what you all will remember me for. Maybe the boy who always greeted everyone by asking “what’s popping?” or the one who always ended each sentence by saying “that’s hot!” But what I do know is that if you ever need anything, you all will always find a friend in me. My fellow classmates, you have made my Regis experience truly unforgettable. I thank you all so much.
Next we should thank all our teachers and the administrators. We owe so much to you all. You have been instrumental in our development. I am not going to miss the work you gave us. Neither am I going to miss the times in which I was doing poorly in a class. I am not going to miss beginning a paper at 1 AM the night before it was due. Nor will I miss the times you called on me in class and I had no idea what was going on. But I am going to miss how all that work helped me develop. I am going to miss how teachers would take time out of their schedules to help me because they wanted me to learn the material. I’m definitely going to miss the times a teacher told me that they were really proud of the progress I had made.
Then, of course, there are the more specific memories. I know we are going to miss those laps around the reservoir in Central Park with Mr. Donodeo and Mr. Cullen. I’m never going to forget the first time I heard Mr. Hannon’s voice, our unique conversations in Dr. Nofi’s class, the way Mr. Vode helped me develop my writing, Dr. Carew’s cool accent, and class with the talented Fr. Judge. I’ll remember Dr. Wallin, well, for being Dr. Wallin. Just kidding. I’ll remember her for the great lady and amazing educator she is. And, of course, I’ll remember Mr. Acosta, a man who teaches and inspires from the heart. This Jesuit education contributed to the morals and values we hold and helped shape us into the young men we are today. I will forever hold a part of this education in my heart. I thank Regis for all the opportunities it has given us and for helping us realize what is most important in life.
Next we must give thanks to our families. I don’t know where we would be without them. They are one of the most important reasons for us reaching this stage in our lives here today. Thank you for all the sacrifices you’ve made for us. Know that my classmates and I see you as some of the most precious treasures we have. My mother, Martha, my father, Rafael, my sister, Jennifer, and my family here and in Colombia, you are the most beautiful gift God could have ever given me. Don’t ever change. I love you. Los quiero mucho.
My fellow classmates, remember that family is one the most significant things in life. No matter what, they will always be there. My friends, please join me in giving a warm round of applause to all the parents and guardians. To all the Regis families, thank you so much.
Finally, we must give thanks to God. Without him, none of this would be possible. From him we receive the peace, energy, and love for everything we do. He has given me the best friends, education, and family that I could ask for. Everytime I laugh, hug, smile, and do everything that I love to do, it is because of him. Remember that wherever you are, God is always looking out for you.
I would like to leave you with three principles. What I believe they lead to, is happiness.
The first principle is humility. Now I’m not saying that I want you all to walk home with your heads down and give up your ipods or designer clothing. No. But what I am asking you to do is to never forget where each one of you came from. Never forget that there are people less fortunate than us in the world. Never forget to treat these people equally. Never think they are any less than us simply because they enjoy fewer privileges than we do. Understand that we have the potential and ability to help these people. With the intellect God has given us combined with the moral formation given to us by our families and Regis, we have the power to do any good deed we want to see done in this world. My fellow classmates, remember that the actions of a person with humility are guided not by money or prestige, but by the heart.
The second principle is faith in yourself. My friends, always believe in yourselves. The only person that can put limits on what you can do during your lifetime is you. Always remember that attitudes are more important than facts. What’s past is past. Remember that the way you feel about yourself, will dictate how you will succeed in life experiences. If you believe in yourself, no one can deny you any success you dream of. If you refuse to listen to the discouraging remarks of those who do not see potential in you, then success is waiting for you right outside that door. If you believe in yourself, everyone else will.
The third and final principle is faith in God. There is a line in Matthew 17:20 that has had a profound impact on my life. It says, “If you have faith…nothing shall be impossible unto you.” Think about it. All you need to know is that God is always on your side. Know that if you trust him, your goals, dreams, and aspirations will become realities. Know that faith enriches every life experience. Where there is faith, there is love, and where there is love, there is happiness.
My friends, if you apply these three principles to your lives, anything you imagine in your minds, you will be able to hold in your hands. Anything. Remember that when you find happiness in yourself, you find success in every area of life. I am convinced that this Class of 2009 will make history. We will be written about in the finest newspapers and history books for generations to come for we are men of Regis and we will reach our full potential. And, wherever you go in life, never forget how much this school has given us and how we are always to be connected with it and with eachother.
God truly blessed me, when he allowed me to spend the past four years of my life with people like you.
Thank you and God bless you all.
Graduation Speech Examples 3
2008 Commencement Speech
College of Education
Jerry Lewis
Thank you so much for that nice introduction, Dean Gerlach. It’s a pleasure to join everyone here tonight for the College of Education commencement ceremonies. I am deeply honored to share this important occasion with you.
A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to attend the University’s annual Service Awards Ceremony. At that ceremony, Dean Gerlach was recognized for 10 years of service to the University. Please join me in a round of applause to congratulate our dean on this wonderful achievement.
So, graduates, here you are. Your moment of truth. You’ve finished your last exams. Turned in your final projects. Paid your parking tickets. You are ready to step into what we all call The Real World.
I’m sure you are getting all kinds of advice lately — and especially today, especially tonight. Right? You should do this — you should do that. You should take this job — you should take that job. You should move here — you should move there. I know it seems endless.
Well, I’d like to send you along with just a little more advice — advice you did not seek, advice you may not care to hear. But it’s free advice, so the price is right, and you’ll only have to hear it once. Class of 2008, here are 10 pieces of advice for your consideration.
Number 1. Use Your Imagination.
Your imagination makes you unlike anyone else. No two people imagine things exactly alike. You have the gift of an imagination — don’t be afraid to use it. Allow yourself to look at things differently. To question things. To visualize things in new ways.
The great writer and social observer Mark Twain once said: “You can’t depend on your judgment when your imagination is out of focus.”
I challenge each of you to bring your imagination into crisp, clear focus. Don’t suppress it. Feed it. Nurture it. Spoil it. Let it help you find answers to vexing questions. Allow your imagination to thrive, and it will help carry you to great things.
Number 2. Go Places.
Ever since I was a small child, I have been amazed at historical accounts of explorers who traveled the globe — Marco Polo, Ponce de Leon, Columbus, Magellan, Captain John Smith.
There is nothing that will help you better understand our world — and your place in it — than to see as much of it as you can and to experience as much of it as you can.
There is a butterfly called the monarch butterfly that has a life-span of at most 8 or 9 months. Yet during migration, those butterflies travel upwards of 2,000 miles to locations they’ve never been before. They just take off — and fly. The vast majority of their lives are spent seeing something entirely new every single day. I challenge each of you to be at least as adventurous as a monarch butterfly.
Number 3. Go Out for Something
I have a friend who is the only journalist and writer in a family full of lawyers. From the time he was a little kid, his mother would clip things out of newspapers and magazines – usually stories about Olympic gold medalists or self-made millionaires or talk-show hosts. And she would always write and attach a note that said, “Why Can’t You Go Out for Something Like This?”
Even after becoming a Pulitzer-prize winning journalist at The Miami Herald, he would still receive these notes from his mother. I wonder if she ever knew how much entertainment we got out of those notes. Or how we mimicked them. To this day, there are a handful of us who send outrageous things to each other with Post-It Notes attached that say, “Why Can’t You Go Out for Something Like This?
My point is: Get a hobby. Take up a musical instrument. Train for a marathon. Plant a garden. Start a collection. Stretch outside your sphere. Reach beyond the low-hanging fruit. Avoid the mundane. Go out for something. Anything.
Number 4. Be Charitable.
One of the best ways to feel good about yourself is to give to others. Maybe it’s to a local arts organization, the United Way, a museum, your church, the Red Cross, or perhaps your alma mater. Regardless of who you give time or money to, find a way to give back a little — or a lot. Whatever your means will allow.
You don’t have to be a millionaire or a billionaire to make a difference in someone else’s life. By helping others, you will make a tremendous difference in their lives. But the biggest difference you make will be in your own life.
Number 5. Don’t Put Things Off.
In our lives, it is so easy to procrastinate. We put off spending time with loved ones, we put off taking a vacation, we put off buying a house, we put off going to the doctor, we put off playing with the kids or the dog.
About 15 years ago, I was diagnosed with cancer. A bad kind, the kind old people get and die from — or as I later learned, the kind your ancestors pass down to you through wacky genetics. But the doctors caught it early, and I was successfully treated. I was lucky. I was given a second chance.
But in life we don’t always get a second chance. We don’t always get a do-over. We only get one day at a time, and we’re not even guaranteed the whole day! Joy and sadness are on either side of the same moment.
So be smart with your time. Do the things that matter to you, and do them now.
You will want a lifetime of great memories, not a long list of regrets.
Number 6. Be Nice.
This one’s pretty simple. You know, really, no one likes a jerk.
Number 7. Step Out of the Virtual World.
I have a friend, a real friend, not a virtual one, who has 2,500 Facebook friends. That’s more people than are in Texas Hall tonight.
Well, first of all, I think it’s phenomenal that he has 2,500 friends, and I emailed him and told him so. But I wonder. If someone stole Tim’s wallet, or if he were in a bad car accident, or if he lost his job, or if he turned up missing. How many of those 2,500 friends would be there for him? Would any of them loan him $100 or send him flowers or visit him at the hospital? Doubtful.
Look at the people next to you. No, really, look at the people sitting right next to you. Now reach over and touch them. On the hand, okay. Or the arm.
That is a real human-being. That is not a character from a video game. That is not an avatar. That is not a Text Message. That’s flesh and blood. That’s a person with hopes and dreams and feelings and facial expressions — just like you. There is no substitute for this. There is no simulated environment that can replace this.
I encourage each of you to disengage yourself from technology from time to time. Make an effort to cultivate one-on-one relationships in real time and in real space. Believe me, I know this isn’t easy. You’ll have to make a conscious effort to do it.
But the payoff is huge. You’ll be a more balanced and well-rounded person because of it. And, besides, you can always take a photo with your real friends and post it on Facebook.
Number 8. Take Care of Yourself.
You only get one body, so it really is in your best interest to take pretty good care of it. Incorporate exercise into your routine. Make it a priority. Eat right. Limit fast food. Don’t smoke. Don’t drink and drive. These things may seem trite and preachy, but they’re important.
Our colleagues over at UT Southwestern Medical Center can do remarkable things to heal and repair the human body, but they can’t do it all. We absolutely have to take some personal responsibility for our own health and well-being.
Number 9. Look Both Ways Before Crossing
As small children, we were all told to look both ways before crossing the street. It was drilled into our heads. I appreciated it most the first time I visited London and almost got run down by a taxi — coming from the direction I almost forgot to look.
Looking both ways applies to more than just traffic. As each of you steps out into The Real World, I hope you’ll be bold and decisive. I hope you’ll make a lot of noise. I hope you’ll use all that you have learned here at UT Arlington to make great personal and professional choices.
You should use your incredible ability to think and to reason to make the most informed choices you possibly can. It will not always be easy. But you will be well-served if you remember, and just take the time, to look both ways before crossing.
Number 10. Don’t Worry About Finding Your Dream Job.
I think too many graduates and their families stress out needlessly over the prospect of finding the perfect job. I can tell you that very few people find their dream job right out of college. For me, my dream job was my third job out of college. And guess what? Every job since then has been a dream job for me.
But I will tell you this. The last thing you want to do is to treat those first two or three jobs like they’re anything but your dream job. Every job you have should be a learning experience. Embrace those first few jobs. Get everything you can out of those experiences. Learn from your bosses and your co-workers. Learn from your environment.
For two summers during college, I worked in customer service for AT&T. To this day, I rely on the incredible customer service training that I received with AT&T. And I can still take a telephone apart and put it back together.
Your education here at UT Arlington was not intended to help train you for your first job. We would be doing you a huge disservice if that’s all we equipped you with. Our job here is to prepare you for your second or third or fourth job. To prepare you for life — and for a lifetime of success and fulfillment.
So don’t stress about it. You will find your dream job. Or perhaps it will find you.
Conclusion
And finally, I know that each of you has worked really hard to get to this moment. It’s a tough road. I know that many of you are the first in your family to attend college. That’s phenomenal — a remarkable achievement.
I, too, was what we call in higher education, “a first-generation college student.” Well, guess what? My little sister was the second in our family to attend college. And now my niece and nephew are taking SATs and looking at colleges and taking campus tours.
My sister and I set the example in our family. And today, you’re setting your own example. You’re creating a new family tradition. Not only are you the first in your family to attend college, you’re now the first in your family to graduate from college! How about that?
Regardless of whether you’re a first-generation student or from a long line of college graduates, one thing is certain: You did not get to this point alone.
You had the support of your parents, grandparents, spouse, partner, brothers, sisters, family, friends — your teachers and advisors — you name it. The diploma may have your name on it. It may be yours – and make no mistake, it most definitely is yours — but it’s not yours and yours alone.
Graduates, how about if you stand right now and give a huge round of applause for all of those people right here in Texas Hall who helped you get to this wonderful moment.
Goodnight and Godspeed, Class of 2020. Don’t be strangers. We look forward to seeing you back on campus soon.
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Graduation Speech Examples 4
GRADUATION SPEECH 21 April 2020
Ladies and gentlemen
It is always a very special privilege for me to present the “State of the Seminary” address at the Graduation Ceremony each year. The past 12 months have been characterized by a number of exciting developments, a few of which I would like to outline briefly:
God has again faithfully provided for us during the past twelve months and enabled us to end the financial year with a surplus. Unlike many seminaries in Africa which rely heavily on donor funding to pay up to 90% of a student’s fee in some cases, our model relies solely on money raised from student fees to pay all our bills. In exceptional cases, we have approached foundations to assist us with large projects, but of course when one does that there is no guarantee that they will respond favorably. Sadly, in the last four months, two of the 20 accredited seminaries in South Africa have had to terminate their operations due to financially related difficulties.
Probably the biggest announcement this past year was that we had received approval from the Council on Higher Education to offer our degree programmes in French. This was the culmination of two years of very hard work, during which two full-time translators and two editors labored incredibly hard to ensure that we could start on 1 February this year. Already 11 students have enrolled, with the promise of many more to come. We trust that this initiative will make a significant contribution towards the training of Christian leaders in francophone Africa.
At the same time, we began to explore the possibility of making a contribution to the training of leaders in the burgeoning church in China. During two very revealing trips to China in the last two months of last year, we realised that we have a role to play and have begun to forge relationships with church and seminary leaders. As an example of the critical need there, I make mention of the fact that there are no seminaries offering PhD’s in China, and only one which offers more than a Diploma. Already several students have expressed their intention to enrol with us and further trips are planned to continue to strengthen fledgling relationships and build new ones.
During 2011 we enrolled over 571 new students and already so far this year a further 334. Our Postgraduate School continues to expand, especially as we added the newly accredited Bachelor of Theology Honours programme during last year. Although we have only been accredited for the PhD in Theology for 4-and-a-half years, we already have 69 candidates currently enrolled with 11 having graduated, including 4 today. Last year we graduated 225 students and today we will graduate a further 215.
We have also expanded our staff to cope with the huge growth we are experiencing. It may surprise you to know that including the part-time and partnership faculty, we now have 132 people on staff, representing at least 25 countries.
I continue to be delighted by the fact that more and more of our African students are undertaking research in the field of African Christianity. We have such a rich heritage on this continent and yet we have seen so many African scholars electing to do essentially Western topics. For those of you, who are graduating today with a four-year degree and are going to enrol for the MTh, please strongly consider researching something that will make a contribution to the church in Africa.
We continue to be excited about the concept of partnering with like-minded seminaries, churches and organisations because we believe that we can do so much more together than we can do independently. We are regularly approached by various groups around the world to partner with them and during the last 12 months a number of new agreements were signed. Some of these are particularly significant. They include the well-respected Nairobi International School of Theology (NIST) which has agreed to enrol all its PHD candidates with us, as from September this year. The Church of Pentecost in Ghana has also enrolled 8 PHD candidates with us. We also had a visit last month from Heritage Christian (University) College in Ghana, with whom we hope to sign a Memorandum of Understanding shortly. A Christian College in Georgia USA is also going to enrol its postgraduate students with us. A number of local partnerships have also been forged during this period, for example the Stellenbosch Theological Institute has enrolled 23 Honours students with us.
Speaking of the US, from September last year a TV station in Atlanta has been broadcasting our Crossroads DVDs, which cover the first six months of the programme, both on their TV channel and their online channel.
International research continues to confirm the move towards distance education as more and more people realise the advantages: students do not want to leave their place of employment, they do not want to leave their families and they do not want to uproot in order to attend often very much more expensive residential programmes.
With respect to our technological development, after a lengthy process, we recently had a fibre-optic line installed, which gives us high speed broadband and the capacity to speak online to many people simultaneously. Additional programming designed to enhance the student’s learning experience on the MySats platform, is ongoing.
Having attended the global conferences on the 4/14 window in New York in 2010 and in Singapore last year, we felt constrained to extend our work in the realm of children’s ministry and to make a major contribution in this field by helping the church in South Africa to understand that it has failed to give due attention to this very critical area of ministry, and by exposing our students in a more integrated way to its precepts and those of the theology of the child. Our own conference last year focused on these topics and in September this year our conference will focus on the training of youth leaders.
So you can see it has been a very busy year. What will the remainder of 2012 hold? There are many new possibilities, but the most important thing is that we are open to hearing God’s voice and responding accordingly. It is very clear from the many opportunities that are coming our way, that God has His hand on us and we look forward to continue serving Him and playing our part in extending His Kingdom.
We feel privileged to be part of this great work and we take very seriously the responsibility to train and equip our students. In an age where liberalism has made such inroads into theological training and the church as a whole, we will not compromise, and we urge you to take the same stance as you continue your ministry.
On your behalf I would like to thank anonymous donors, who have very kindly donated the mini-library which each of you received today. I trust that this will assist you in your ministry.
Finally, the staff at the South African Theological Seminary are very proud of your achievements. You have spent many hours outside of work time on your courses, something which we know requires great self-discipline. We salute you. I also want to pay tribute to your family members who had to endure with you, often foregoing important family time in order to see you realise the qualification to which God has called you. Thank you for seeing your spouses, children, parents through this great task. Our prayer is that these sacrifices may bear great fruit for the Kingdom as you go and put into practice what you have learnt here at SATS…..I thank you.