Celebrating Triumphs and Reflections during AdU’s 86th Commencement Exercises
Date Posted: July 31, 2024 at 02:37 PM
Adamson University’s 86th Commencement Exercises, held last July 19, was marked by celebration and profound reflection.
Graduates, faculty members, family, and friends gathered to honor the achievements of the Class of 2024, witnessing the culmination of years of hard work and dedication.
The ceremony was graced by two compelling speeches delivered by standout graduation candidates, each offering unique perspectives and valuable life lessons. Isabella Leigh Tabudlong from the Political Science Department spoke in the morning session, while Charleswin Bo, representing the Information Technology program, addressed the audience in the afternoon.
Both speeches were a testament to the resilience and growth experienced by the graduates during their time at Adamson University.
Tabudlong’s and Bo’s reflections celebrated their academic achievements and emphasized the broader lessons learned outside the classroom. They captured the essence of the graduates’ journey and highlighted the importance of compassion, perseverance, and the pursuit of excellence.
Embracing Change and Compassion
Isabella Leigh Tabudlong delivered the address of thanks during the morning session and captivated her fellow candidates with a moving and reflective speech.
She began by acknowledging the support she received from parents, friends, faculty, and fellow graduates. Tabudlong’s heartfelt gratitude set the stage for her narrative, which delved into the challenges she faced growing up with her parents working abroad, which extended to her learnings as she went beyond her comfort zone.
“I remember growing up with my parents working abroad,” she shared. “They left when I was still a child to provide my sister and me a better life.” This early separation led to resentment and a strained relationship with her parents, which she later understood through their sacrifices.
Tabudlong’s story highlighted her transformation from a resentful child to a dedicated student. It revealed how her parents' absence drove her to excel academically and aim to create a better life for her family.
“If I focused on my studies and succeeded in the future, I could help my parents return home while I took the job of providing,” she said, describing her mindset then. This commitment to excellence became another central theme in her speech, illustrating how personal challenges fueled her academic and personal growth.
Her reflections on the pandemic’s impact on her college experience were particularly poignant. During the early years of the pandemic, Tabudlong dedicated herself to studying, often isolating herself from social activities. “I was, and still am, a nerd,” she admitted with a smile.
While rewarding, her intense focus on academics initially made her lose sight of the broader world beyond her studies. However, her experiences at Adamson University eventually broadened her perspective.
Tabudlong credited her professors and involvement in university activities with expanding her understanding of compassion and community. She learned valuable lessons about empathy and social responsibility through her engagement with various organizations and interactions with marginalized communities.
“I remember talking to an elderly ‘nanay na magsasaka’ ' She became teary-eyed and expressed her gratitude profusely towards us,” she recounted, highlighting how her social awareness was developed through her experiences.
Three key lessons emerged from Tabudlong’s address. She emphasized embracing change with gratitude and learning to see opportunities as pathways to growth rather than distractions.
The Summa Cum Laude from the Political Science program then highlighted the importance of recognizing and addressing the broader struggles faced by others, moving beyond personal challenges. She also spoke about making a difference through simple acts of kindness and empathy, illustrating that impactful change often comes from everyday actions.
Tabudlong’s message concluded with a call to action for her fellow graduates to embody the University’s core values of competence, character, and charity.
“Let us not lose sight of what we’ve learned along the way, for the lessons we’ve memorized and studied for years hold little meaning unless they are applied to create a better, just, and more humane society,” she said.
Of Perseverance and Self-Belief
In the afternoon session, Charleswin Bo delivered an inspiring address focused on perseverance and self-belief. His speech resonated with graduates as he reflected on his four-year journey as an Information Technology student.
Bo’s speech emphasized the value of trial and error in academic and personal growth.
“Life can be related to this concept,” he explained. “It is a constant battle of cut and try.”
He then shared his own experiences of failure and how these setbacks became opportunities for improvement.
“You cannot improve yourself without failures,” he said. “And you cannot succeed without improving yourself.” This mindset of viewing failures as stepping stones was a central theme in his address.
He recounted his aspiration to graduate with distinction and the changes he embraced to achieve this goal.
“It was on October 19, 2020, when I imagined this exact scene,” Bo shared, describing how his goal pushed him beyond his comfort zone, leading to significant accomplishments such as scholarships, international recognition, and the publication of his capstone project, and graduation with the highest academic distinction.
Bo’s message also emphasized the importance of allowing changes and adapting to new challenges. He reflected on how his early decisions and willingness to push his limits led to personal and academic successes.
“These achievements would [not have been] possible if I had not allowed myself to move forward and change,” he noted.
“Life is not a race. We each have our destination, and we are responsible for carving our path to that endpoint,” he said, encouraging his fellow graduates to focus on their journeys and aspirations rather than comparing themselves to others.
Bo concluded his speech by reflecting on the importance of cherishing the moments and recognizing the endpoints in their flowcharts of life. He acknowledged the challenges faced during the pandemic and celebrated the graduates' resilience.
“Despite all those challenges, we managed to soar high and conquer our college life,” he said.
