Commencement speech
Kent Beck giving a commencement speech
The University of New Hampshire commencement, at which George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton spoke
A commencement speech or commencement address is a speech given to graduating students, generally at a university, generally in the United States, although the term is also used for secondary education institutions.
The "commencement" is a ceremony in which degrees or diplomas are conferred upon graduating students. A commencement speech is typically given by a notable figure in the community, during the commencement exercise. The person giving such a speech is known as a commencement speaker. Very commonly, colleges or universities will invite politicians, important citizens, or other noted speakers to come and address the graduating class.
A commencement speech is less bound by the structure found in other forms of public address, like eulogies or wedding speeches. The speaker accordingly enjoys a unique freedom to express him or herself. Executive speechwriter Anthony Trendl writes
.mw-parser-output .templatequote{overflow:hidden;margin:1em 0;padding:0 40px}.mw-parser-output .templatequote .templatequotecite{line-height:1.5em;text-align:left;padding-left:1.6em;margin-top:0}
A commencement speech, simply, is an opportunity to share your experience, values and advice. The precise form is up to you. This affords the speaker a platform to say amazing, unlimited things.[1]
Contents
1 Some notable speeches
2 2016 speeches
3 2017 speeches
4 See also
5 References
6 External links
Some notable speeches
Winston Churchill at Harrow School in 1941[2][3]
John F. Kennedy's American University speech in 1963[2]
Hillary Rodham at Wellesley College in 1969[4]
Richard Feynman at the California Institute of Technology in 1974 : "Cargo cult science"
Steve Jobs at Stanford University in 2005[5]
David Foster Wallace at Kenyon College in 2005: "This Is Water"
J. K. Rowling at Harvard University in 2008: The Fringe Benefits of Failure[6]
Will Ferrell at university of South Carolina in 2017
2016 speeches
Barack Obama, Howard University[7]
James Franco, Cornell University
Steven Spielberg, Harvard[8][9]
Peter Thiel, Hamilton College[10][11]
Michael Bloomberg, University of Michigan[12]
Charles Duhigg, Wren College[13]
- Coach Mike Krzyzewski, Duke University[14]
- U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas at Hillsdale College's[15]
2017 speeches
Donald Trump, Liberty University 05/13/2017[16]
Hillary Rodham Clinton, Wellesley College 05/26/17[17][18][19]
See also
- Graduation
- Speech
References
^ Trendl, Anthony. "What Makes a Commencement Speech?"..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}
^ ab "Top 10 Commencement Speeches". Time magazine. Retrieved April 9, 2013.
^ "The 10 Best Graduation Speeches of All Time: Winston Churchill, Former UK PM". CNBC. Retrieved April 9, 2013.
^ "Student Speech". Wellesley College. Retrieved 2016-03-02.
^ "'You've got to find what you love,' Jobs says". Stanford Report. June 14, 2005. Retrieved November 30, 2013.
^ J.K. Rowling Speaks at Harvard Commencement. 15 September 2011. Retrieved 28 March 2016 – via YouTube.
^ The Obama White House (7 May 2016). "President Obama Delivers the Commencement Address at Howard University". Retrieved 18 April 2018 – via YouTube.
^ "Steven Spielberg Selected as 2016 Commencement Speaker - News - The Harvard Crimson". www.thecrimson.com. Retrieved 18 April 2018.
^ "Harvard Live - Harvard University". Harvard University. Retrieved 18 April 2018.
^ Staff, Entrepreneur (23 May 2016). "Peter Thiel Commencement Speech, Hamilton College, May 2016 (Transcript)". entrepreneur.com. Retrieved 18 April 2018.
^ Holly Foster (May 22, 2016). "PayPal Co-Founder Peter Thiel Urges Class of 2016 to "Do What Hasn't Been Done"". Hamilton.edu. Retrieved December 28, 2016.
^ University of Michigan (2 May 2016). "Michael Bloomberg's 2016 Commencement Speech - University of Michigan". Retrieved 18 April 2018 – via YouTube.
^ http://wrencollege.blogspot.com/2016/05/2016-wren-college-commencement-address.html?spref=tw[dead link]
^ Duke University (15 May 2016). "Coach Mike Krzyzewski's 2016 Commencement Speech at Duke University". Retrieved 18 April 2018 – via YouTube.
^ "Hillsdale College's 164th Commencement Ceremony". www.hillsdale.edu. Retrieved 18 April 2018.
^ "Trump at Liberty University commencement: 'In America, we don't worship government; we worship God'". Washington Post. Retrieved 2017-05-15.
^ Bidgood, Jess; Seelye, Katharine Q. (2017-05-26). "At Wellesley, Hillary Clinton Criticizes Trump and Invokes Nixon Resignation". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-06-13.
^ Diamond, Anna. "What Hillary Clinton Said to the Wellesley Class of 2017". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2017-06-13.
^ "Commencement Address". Wellesley College. Retrieved 2017-06-13.
External links
- The art of the commencement speech, an archive
Excerpts from commencement speeches by Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, and J.K. Rowling
 | This article about a university or other tertiary education institution is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
