For those of you who don't know I was chosen as student speaker for the class of 2020. This is for my department; not the University. My peers chose me to represent them in an intimate ceremony the evening before graduation. The department waited a year anticipating being in person. That did not happen. We had the ceremony over Zoom. Here's what I said:
Institute of Pastoral Studies faculty, staff, students,
family, friends, I am honored to be your class speaker and represent the class
of 2020. Fellow students today is a day of joy and celebration. We have done so
much work to get to this point. We can do 250-word reflections in our sleep; we
have written papers that have helped us support our arguments and learned a
whole lot about ourselves. Our professors have become mentors that have had
lasting impressions on our hearts.
For me, the professors were the first people I met who truly
were walking the walk. They are people who are striving to change the world and
make it a better place. They inspire me to take action and live as if anything
is possible. God smiles down on the Institute of Pastoral Studies because we
don’t just sit in our ivory tower, we get on the ground and help people. We are
not afraid of people who look or think differently, we will be the people who
build bridges between our fellow humans. That is a critical gift, and we are
called to use it. Right now, the world is realizing that people who are
marginalized need to be seen and heard. Our human family is better when we hear
everyone and not just the so-called majority. This is wonderful. However, my
fear is that it is a trend, and not going to be permanently embedded in our
society. That possibility is unacceptable, we have to be the ones that make
sure the marginalized are seen and heard. Hearing voices of marginalized people
should be permanent, not a trend.
To my fellow graduates, the fact that you saw how joyful I
was and trusted me with leadership positions, thank you. You embraced me for
what I stand for, not my disability. Your acts of kindness have been etched in
my heart forever. And thank you for not labeling me as inspiring, it let me be
a genuine peer. I enjoyed not having that label, it allowed for me to explore
different parts of my identity. Please keep the vision you have, to see hearts
first and an individual’s circumstances second. You all have a place in my heart.
Finally, I want to thank my family. They taught me to be unrealistic.
When I was a baby, a lot of doctors told my parents to have really low
expectations for me. They did not subscribe to that belief system at all. They
had high expectations and they believed in me and now, I’m the student speaker
at graduation getting my master’s degree. Believe in yourself, build a support
system, and chase your dreams. Congratulations to the class of 2020 and the class
of 2021, we did it!
Looking forward to the future,
Hannah!
