(as prepared for delivery)
Good morning and welcome to all as we gather to celebrate the 102nd commencement of Christopher Newport University!
It is a truly great day to be a Captain!
Today is a day to celebrate and to give thanks.
We celebrate and lift up the graduates of the Class of 2026. We celebrate the families and friends who stood beside you throughout the journey! We celebrate our faculty and staff who have poured their knowledge, their inspiration, their patience, and their heart into our Captains. We celebrate our community: Our Board of Visitors, our friends, and our supporters. There are so many hands on the helm guiding this journey and today we celebrate all in attendance with us and those watching online. Thank you!
Let’s also thank everyone who made today possible - commencement is an all hands on deck evolution - Captains, would you please join me in a round of applause for all who made today possible.
Thank You …. two important words in our English language and two words you will hear me speak about this morning.
First, though, this is an historic moment in the life of this university. This September, we will celebrate the 65th anniversary of the first day of class at then Christopher Newport College. The first graduate of CNC was Dr. Lois Wright and that first commencement didn’t take very long. That’s because Dr. Wright was the only graduate!
She is a Captain for Life and today we will welcome close to 1,000 Captains to the ranks of our alumni as we officially welcome you as Captains for Life!
And while I’m sure that first commencement was relatively brief, I promise you today’s formal ceremony will be appropriately brief as well as we welcome you in a way that is distinctly CNU - intentionally different from the way many other universities hold commencement ceremonies.
We do this “family style” because we are a family here at Christopher Newport University. After this ceremony and our processional, we will invite your families and friends down front when it's your specific time slot and when your name is called and you cross the dias, I will have the privilege to shake your hand and then throughout the day you will have the opportunity to take part in our traditions - tossing your penny in the fountain, ringing the bell and receiving your hoods from your dedicated faculty.
And maybe best of all, we don’t have a lengthy commencement speaker, just a few words from the president because the voices and the smiles that should be cherished on this day will come from your classmates, your friends, the many people who have educated and supported you at CNU..and, of course, the people who love you. That’s what we mean by “family style.”
So as your commencement speaker, please allow me a moment to share a brief thought or two with you. Captains, you are ready to excel in whatever you choose to do next. Whether you are ready to start your career or enter graduate school, you have the skills… the hard skills and the soft skills… and you have the knowledge to thrive.
Because your education was embedded in the liberal arts, you know how to think, and think critically, you know how to work collectively in groups and you value the diversity that each member brings to a team, you know how to write and how to listen with compassion, and I know you know how to lead.
Thanks to our professors, you are current with the latest thinking and technology in your chosen field. And because you are Captains, you also understand the value of hard work and the importance of being kind.
But of all the lessons I hope you carry forward from Christopher Newport, perhaps the simplest is this: Never underestimate the power of saying thank you.
One of the faculty members who poured his heart and soul into this university and into our students was Dr. David Pollio.
As many of you know, Professor Pollio passed away unexpectedly just a few months ago. He was deeply loved by his students and colleagues because he gave so much of himself to others.
Students were always at the center of his life’s work.
And I know there are many people — myself included — who wish they had one more opportunity to say thank you to Dave.
We cannot always reclaim the moments we miss. But we can choose not to miss the moments still before us.
Graduates, in the days ahead, many of you will send texts, emojis, and quick messages of appreciation and thanks — and those matter.
But there is something powerful about capitalizing on the moment and sitting down with a pen and paper and writing a genuine note of thanks.
It requires reflection.
It requires intention.
It requires your time.
And because it requires something of us, it means something to the person receiving it. I can tell you from first hand experience that those messages, notes, and hand written cards are cherished. Mrs. Kelly and I have a special box where we keep the notes we receive and they lift us up when needed and they always inspire us to keep serving and giving back.
So here is my charge to you:
In the coming days, buy a box of thank-you cards.
Then find a quiet moment and write to the people who helped you reach this day.
Write to your parents or grandparents.
Write to a high school mentor.
Write to a professor or a coach.
Write to a classmate.
Write to someone who believed in you before you fully believed in yourself.
Tell them specifically why they mattered.
I promise you — it will mean more than you know.
In fact, today we are going to help you get started. Over near the DSU, you will find CNU thank-you cards, we also have envelopes, and pens. Write a note today. Give it to a faculty or staff member. Give it to a parent or grandparent. You can even address it and we will stamp it and mail it for you, or you can take it home with you and take a moment to send a note of thanks to that special person who supported you along the way.
So in addition to turning your tassel, tossing your penny in the fountain, ringing the bell one last time, and receiving your diploma, I ask that you take a moment to demonstrate the gratitude that separates Captains from all others.
Graduates, gratitude changes people.
It changes relationships.
It changes communities.
And quite honestly, it changes us.
If saying thank you becomes part of who you are and part of your character and you couple that with the hard work you have demonstrated across campus - you will not only be successful, you will most certainly live a life of significance.
So before this day ends…
Before the celebrations fade…
Before the next chapter begins…
Write a note and thank the people who helped chart your course.
Thank the people who stood the watch beside you. Thank the people who loved and supported you along the way.
Because none of us reaches this moment alone.
Take a moment to not only say thank you, but take a moment to put those thoughts in writing for someone who made a difference in your life … what better time than the present to say Thank You!
Please know that Mrs. Kelly and I are so very proud of you and we cannot let this moment pass without thanking you as well. When we arrived at Christopher Newport, most of you were beginning your sophomore year. You welcomed us from day one and allowed us to take this journey alongside you.
You will always be in our hearts, you have given us so much joy and we will watch with great pride as you go forward and represent this university as Captains for Life!
Graduates, take lots of pictures today. Give lots of hugs. Shake lots of hands and take in all of our traditions and carry our values of honor, service, scholarship, and leadership wherever life may take you!
You did it.
But before you go … Could I get one last Usie with the Great Class of 2026?
Angie and I are so very proud of you. We will never forget you.
Thank You Graduates … And as always …. Go Captains!