DURHAM — In her introduction of guest speaker the Rev. Gwendolyn Boyd, North Carolina Central Chancellor Karrie G. Dixon warned, “If you have not heard her speak, hold on to your seats, graduates.” 

Boyd served as the 14th president of Alabama State University, worked in the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, was the 22nd national president of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and is an ordained minister in the African Methodist Episcopal Church. 

Boyd did not disappoint. She spoke fast, with the cadence of a preacher and the ideas of a historian. She started by acknowledging the challenges students overcame. 

“You have done all the assignments, faced all the challenges – early morning, late night,” she said. “You have paid all your bills so that you could cross this stage today. Some are the first in your families to graduate from college. Some balanced work and family and completing your academic assignments with excellence. Some of you have conquered the doubts, your own and that of others, about whether you should be here.” 

Boyd moved on to what graduates could face next. “This world you are entering is complex, challenging, chaotic, confusing and crazy,” she said. “It needs your intelligence and integrity. It needs your innovation and compassion.” 

She ended her talk with advice: 

* “Pray every day. 

* Choose your friends carefully. 

* Stay focused on your future. 

* Know your worth and don’t settle for anything less. 

* Take reasonable risks. 

* Dream big. If your dreams don’t scare you, they are not big enough. 

* Trust God and hold onto hope. 

* Finish strong and take a victory lap every day.” 

Eagles are No Ordinary Barnyard Fowls 

During the baccalaureate ceremony for the College of Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities, Dena King ‘06 described what graduates could learn from NCCU’s Eagle mascot. King is the former U.S. attorney for the Western District of North Carolina, the first person of color to hold that position. 

“Eagles are some of the largest birds,” King said. “They have broad wings that allow them to fly at great heights. Flying high is not always easy, but it provides you with greater perspective. I challenge you to rise above the distractions in life and limitation others try to place upon you.” 

Find your Identity 

Ray Lewis is an author, motivational speaker and former defensive player for the Baltimore Ravens who was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.  

Lewis spoke about finding one’s identity. “Once you decide who you are in life, everything in your life starts aligning with it,” Lewis said during the baccalaureate ceremony for graduates of the College of Health and Sciences, School of Education and School of Business. “Life doesn’t just give you what you want. It responds to who you are.” 

Lewis suggested several ways to build identity: 

* Train your mind. “Stop grabbing your phone and instead pick up a Bible every morning.” 

* Stop needing approval to move.  

* Get comfortable being alone. 

* Stop complaining about your life to other people. 

* “The wrong people will break you. The right people will pray with you and build you.” 

Life can be difficult, but that difficulty can be a benefit. “Most people run from storms,” Lewis said. “Sometimes a storm isn’t there to break you, but it is there to shake you out of your comfort zone.” 

Chancellor Dixon got in the final words. “Today, you are not simply earning a degree, you are embracing the responsibility to use your knowledge, your growth and your purpose to make a meaningful difference in the world,” she said. “

147th Commencement 

An estimated 1,062 students earned degrees, including 579 bachelor’s, 394 master’s and 89 Juris Doctorates. Graduates engaged in 30,805 hours of community service worth an estimated $1,031,659. 

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