Good morning and welcome everyone to Middlesex County College’s 48th Commencement exercises celebrating 50 years of academic excellence. Wow. Thank you all for taking the time out of your busy lives to be here together in this moment.
Thank you to the professors, to the faculty and other professionals who have guided us here. Thank you to our family, to our friends and other loved ones who have continuously supported us.
Many of you do not know me. My name is Nicole Risoli. I am a paralegal major in the Division of Professional Studies. I have the privilege today of being your valedictorian and a recent recipient of the Frank M. Chambers Award. But all that I think is printed in your program. You know, the one you keep checking to see where we are. Don’t worry we’re at the top of page three. But what’s not printed in there is the essence of my story: That during my time at Middlesex, I was engaged, married and gave birth during my final semester this past November. And yes, that I took that long walk from the back of parking lot 1, up that hill, sometimes I cut through Crabiel Hall, all the way to Edison Hall weekly, with an enormous growing belly making plenty of heads turn along the way. That I graduated from high school 10 years ago. I actually lied to my parents in order to get out of the ceremony and since then have attended two other colleges. And, most importantly, that I dropped out of that dreaded public speaking class a total of four times. Speaking terrifies me. Thank goodness today for these large gowns and funny, dare I say ridiculous, hats.
But many of you do know me. I am a wife, a mother, a step mother, a sister, and a daughter. I hold a full-time job and a part-time job. I am a friend, colleague, and student. I exhibit hard work, determination, and commitment. You see, we are all many of these familiar things and wear many of these different hats. The greatest things I have learned at Middlesex have been from the diverse community I have met. We have all proven together that no matter what age or stage of life you are in, or how many hats you are wearing, it is never too early or too late to invest in your education. Which is ultimately an investment in ourselves.
I am sorry to disappoint, but I have no secrets or great message to share with you today that you haven’t heard before. Your hard work has paid off and I commend you for your successes big or small. The most frequently asked question of the day seems to be, so what are your plans? What’s next? For some of us we will go on to other colleges. For some of us we will enter the workforce if we aren’t already there. But for some of us, like me, we just shrug our shoulders because we still don’t know what we want to be when we grow up. And that’s okay too. Because the truth is there is no direct path from the seat you are sitting in today to where you are going. There are no definitive answers. Success is what you make of it and only comes when you embrace opportunity when you find it. If you keep your eyes open, I assure you that opportunity will find you. I hope you find happiness, love, strength and courage along the way.
Today we celebrate together opportunity. Today we all wear the same hat. This ridiculous graduation hat. Wear it proudly. Congratulations Class of 2015. We did it!
