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CSB Student Brings Inspiration to a Commencement Address

By Kechi Okwuchi—-

Applying to become the commencement speaker for the graduating class of 2015 was something I had never even considered until I received the email about a month ago. I had never given it much prior thought, not because of lack of interest, but because it was such a far-fetched notion to me. I have always thought very highly of individuals who obtain the honor of speaking on such important occasions, and I had never thought to include myself as a possible candidate for such an honor. But when I got that email, I realized that someone had to give the speech. Someone had to stand at that podium in front of an esteemed audience as a representative of the graduates of 2015. Therefore, why not me?

MY FIRST FOUR YEARS

In my first four years at UST as a business major in Economics, I had to juggle my academics and my medical engagements as best I could, and so it became that all my free time, including holidays, had to be dedicated to surgical treatments and hospital appointments. As such, I didn’t get much of a chance to get as involved in campus life and activities as I would’ve preferred. The one thing I could do, however, was attend the variety of workshops, seminars and talks that were hosted by the Cameron School of Business. Most business majors spend a large portion of their time on campus in Welder, myself included, and whenever I was in the business lounge, I would look up to the TV screen and get an update on the recurring list of business events that were available for students to take advantage of. This is a significant part of my CSB experience that I will always value because I relied on those weekly updates to keep myself informed about the real world of business that I am about to dive into once I graduate. Attending those workshops and talks became a sort of habit because I would always come out of every single one better informed about several different aspects of business, locally and internationally.

In fact, it was through attendance of those seminars that focused specifically on factors affecting global economies that I realized I wanted to further my knowledge on the international part of business for my masters, and that is why I applied and gained admission into UST’s MIB program. I will hopefully start in the fall, and when I do, I will become even more involved in CSB activities and events. In the meantime, I am hoping to give something back to UST, to the Cameron School of Business, for all the invaluable knowledge and experiences I have obtained as a student here, and I truly felt that this was something I could emphasize on if given the chance to speak at the graduation ceremony.

THE SPEECH

It was with this mindset that I decided to apply for the honor of becoming this year’s commencement speaker. I told no one of my decision to apply, not even my mother who I usually tell everything, though when I finished the first draft she was the first to hear it. I started putting the speech together about two weeks before the due date, and before I started, as with everything I write of this nature, I prayed first. Ever since my accident, I have had some experience with speaking words of inspiration to different groups of people, and I have found that my words seem to flow better when I first pray.

 

So, I prayed first, and then I thought about what I wanted to portray in my speech. What kind of words would I want to hear from a person speaking to me on my graduation day? What would encourage me? What would make me truly feel like my graduation was something to be celebrated? How can I make people understand that what I have gained here at UST is something to be treasured?

 

With all these questions in mind, I started to write from my heart. I simply typed the words into the document as they came; I knew the time for refinement would come later. As I typed, my past experiences came to mind: my accident, the obstacles I had overcome with the help of God and those around me, the past five years at UST and how hard my peers and I had worked to get to this point… all these were things I wanted to portray in come form or another in my speech. Once through with my draft, I read it out to my mother and also sent a copy to a trusted professor, both of whom provided constructive feedback. My mother felt that the introduction needed some work, and my professor felt that the entire speech needed a more personal touch, and their advice helped me refine the speech further. After the second round of editing, I finally submitted the speech on the date it was due.

MY HOPE

My hope is that when people hear my speech, they will be able to understand how much my experience here at UST, with professors and students alike, has influenced my way of thinking. As a Business major, I believe that there is something to be said about the effect that a theological foundation can have on learning about the business world, and that is a valuable method of teaching I feel is promoted here, especially at the Cameron School of Business. This is because a lot of the business courses we take seem to emphasize the importance of making good business decisions that are also in keeping with moral/ ethical behavior and which positively impact society as a whole. I only pray that my fellow graduates and I can hold onto these values as we become a part of the outside world, so that we might perhaps, one day, change it.

 

Kechi Okwuchi.

UST -Economics & Marketing – BBA Candidate

 

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