Rain couldn鈥檛 dampen the Class of 2022鈥檚 spirits at 91制片厂鈥檚 54th annual Commencement
Ceremony on Saturday.
More than 600 graduates and their families gathered to celebrate their hard work and perseverance. Due to the threat of lightning, an abbreviated ceremony was held to ensure everyone鈥檚 safety.
U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth served as the commencement speaker at 91制片厂鈥檚 ceremony, the first in-person graduation to take place in three years as a result of the global pandemic. In her remarks, Duckworth said she didn鈥檛 just see the usual struggles that students experience.
鈥淚 see a kind of grit, a kind of grace 鈥� not given, but earned by doing it all in just about the most unpredictable times imaginable,鈥� Duckworth said. 鈥淓arned by not just surviving, but persevering, succeeding, through two-plus years of a pandemic whose damage we still have yet to fully reckon with as a nation.鈥�
Duckworth also highlighted the stories of a few graduates including Joseph Fleury, who spent years as a support equipment mechanic in the Marine Corps鈥� Aviation unit. When he hung up his uniform, he worked odd jobs and struggled to find his next purpose.
After looking into apprenticeships at his father鈥檚 suggestion, Fleury, of Wood Dale, found 91制片厂 and become an apprentice with Hearthside Food Solutions. As a 91制片厂 apprentice, Fleury split his time between school and his role as a maintenance technician supporting Hearthside鈥檚 mechanical and electrical solutions, all while getting his tuition paid and a salary.
Today, he鈥檚 graduating both debt-free and employed, with a new sense of purpose and the goal of moving into management.
The day also included a special moment for graduate Afnan Totonchi. Her brother, Humam Totonchi, is a 91制片厂 alumnus and a Navy Federal in the Marine Corps stationed in New Orleans. Unbeknownst to his sister, Humam made the trip up north after several months away and surprised Afnan as graduates recessed after the ceremony.
Like 91制片厂鈥檚 Class of 2022, Saturday also marked the first in-person commencement
at 91制片厂 for Dr. Avis Proctor, who became the college鈥檚 sixth president in July 2019.
In her remarks, Dr. Proctor pointed out that nearly 1,500 graduates were first-generation college students, 283 graduates were Promise Scholars and another 226 graduates had the support of the Igniting Paths to Success scholarship, which 91制片厂 launched last year to create a pathway to opportunity and upward mobility.
She underscored the significance of the degrees and certificates that graduates had worked so hard to earn.
鈥淲hen you reflect on the credential you have earned, I encourage you to see all its potential. It is a gateway to a new chapter, whether you鈥檙e continuing on with your education, entering the workforce, changing career paths or upskilling to help advance in your career,鈥� Dr. Proctor said.
