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‘You Are Making Us Proud’

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Watch these inspiring speeches from the CSU’s 2024 commencement season.

 

The confetti has been cleared and the stadiums ​emptied, but we’re still riding the high of celebrating tens of thousands of CSU graduates this spring. As we wrap up the 2024 commencement season, let's revisit a few crowd-pleasing speeches from this year’s ceremonies.​​​

 
 
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STEPHANIE WIGGINS

CEO, LA METRO
CSU DOMINGUEZ HILLS

Stephanie Wiggins spoke to graduates of CSU Dominguez Hills’s College of Business Administration and Public Policy May 18, highlighting the importance of looking out for others. “I hope you live openly and empathetically, and that you’ll help this world become a better, kinder and more welcoming place,” she said. Wiggins is the CEO of LA​ Metro, the lead transportation​ agency for the 10 million residents of LA County and the second busiest transit agency in the U.S. She is the first woman—and first African American woman—to hold the position.

 
 

XAVIER BECERRA

SECRETARY, U.S. DEPT. OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
FRESNO STATE

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra delivered a keynote address at Fresno State’s Chicano/Latino Commencement Celebration May 18. Becerra, who previously served as the attorney general for the state of California from 2017-2021, is the first Latino to hold the position. In his speech, Becerra talked about being the son of immigrants and a first-generation college graduate. "Congratulations for what you are going to do for this country, you are making us proud," he said. "This is home. Continue to make us proud."​

 
 

ROY CHOI

AUTHOR, RESTAURATEUR
CAL STATE FULLERTON

“You can bridge inequities with the choices you make,” Cal State Fullerton alumnus Roy Choi (’94) told graduates of CSUF’s College of Business and Economics May 22. Choi is best known for his partnership in the gourmet Korean Mexican taco truck Kogi BBQ and for writing a New York Times best-selling autobiography, “L.A. Son: My Life, My City, My Food.” He was also named in Time magazine’s “TIME 100” list of the most influential people in the world in 2011 and 2016 and is the host of the Emmy Award-winning PBS SoCal series “Broken Bread,” which explores social justice issues in Los Angeles, including waste and sustainability. Choi received an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree during the ceremony.

 
 

BENJAMIN BRATT

ACTIVIST, ACTOR
SAN FRANCISCO STATE

Actor Benjamin Bratt asked graduates from San Francisco State’s Class of 2024 to consider what they will do with the privilege and power of a university education during his speech at SF State’s commencement ceremony May 24. “I’ll let you in on a little secret,” he said. “We’re counting on you to do something spectacular even as you figure it out, because you are the inspiration of our hope.” In addition to his award-winning work as an actor in movies and television shows, including “Law & Order,” Bratt is a longtime supporter of the American Indian College Fund, the Mission Cultural Center and other nonprofits. Bratt received an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree during the ceremony.​

More than 137,000 graduates participated in CSU commencement ceremonies across the state this spring in celebration of their academic achievements, extracurricular accomplishments, service work and perseverance. See some of the highlights​.

Story: Alisia Ruble

photography/videography:  Courtesy of CSU campuses

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6/27/2024