May 20, 2023
As the 2000 alumna delivered the keynote address at Susquehanna University’s 165th Commencement, 她仔细琢磨着“飞跃”这个词及其字面和隐喻意义.
“Leap是一个特别可爱的词. It sounds, somehow, like what it suggests, 长颈鹿的声音听起来像脖子很长，或者笑起来总是看起来像在笑. Leap是一个优雅的词，一个优雅的词，”皮尔斯说. “但有时候，听起来像什么并不完全是什么.”
皮尔斯继续说，跳跃可能是“混乱、笨拙、尴尬的”. 2023届毕业生即将迎来的飞跃或许也是如此. 和她之前的毕业生一样，皮尔斯23年前也面临着自己的飞跃. 她准备上研究生院——那是唯一一所录取她的学校. Upon her arrival she was confronted by writers who (she believed) “had sprung from the womb writing stellar poems.” And she knew no one.
“我到处乱打. But gradually — so gradually I didn’t notice it happening — my flailing slowed,” she said. “毕业的时候，我感觉很舒服. At least for a little while. The leaping never ends. There is always uncertainty. 值得庆幸的是，我们总是有我们想知道的事情，我们想探索的问题.”
After graduating from Susquehanna, Pierce went on to earn her master’s degree from Ohio State University in 2003 and her doctorate from the University of Missouri in 2007. She is professor of English and co-director of the creative writing program at Mississippi State University. In 2021, the governor of Mississippi appointed Pierce as the state’s official poet laureate through 2025.
皮尔斯给即将成为她校友的同学们一些当之无愧的建议:集中注意力. The hard times aren’t forever. Time is precious. 用同理心和慷慨来对待他人.
“And maybe, either now or down the road, you’ll want to take a break from leaping for a little while. Do that. 没有休息，就不可能跳跃. 没有跳跃，什么都不会发生，”皮尔斯说. “休息过后，你又会跳起来. 你会做得很笨拙，也就是说，你会做得很漂亮.”
Challenges Faced and Overcome
“就像几年前我们适应了新环境一样, the world stopped spinning,” Sivio said. “回到校园后，我们很多人都觉得自己的时间被剥夺了, but instead of dwelling, we decided to show Susquehanna University that if there was one thing to be true about the Class of 2023, 我们是一群开拓者和坚韧的领导者.”
They have faced the unthinkable together, Sivio said, and led each other through national tumult.
“In our time together, we made it through a tumultuous election; we came together to protect democracy; joined hands and raised our voices for women’s rights and autonomy, climate change, racial and social justice, and so many other movements,” Sivio said. “通过这一切，我们证明了我们是一支不可忽视的力量.”
西维奥敦促她的同学们寻找自己的完美版本.
“记住，完美对每个人来说都是不同的. Take that job in a new city, even if you will be all alone; move back home and relish in one last summer with your mom; go to grad school and chase your dream of becoming all that you are meant to be,” Sivio said. “Whatever it is, 如果它能让你快乐，给你带来平静，你要知道, 你已经完成了自己的完美版本.”
Looking Ahead to Bright Futures
“At your convocation, 我们都不知道七个月后, 我们将陷入一场全球性的流行病. 就在你开始觉得萨斯奎哈纳就是你的家的时候, 你们分散在全国和世界各地,” Green said. “然而，这个课程创造了特别牢固的纽带, 你们的毕业率是近年来最高的.”
Among the Class of 2023, 35人获得两个学士学位，1人获得三个学士学位. One hundred forty-eight graduated with summa cum laude — the Latin honor of highest distinction requiring a cumulative grade point average of 3.8 or above. 他们也在世界各地留下了自己的印记. 通过浩博体育app的全球机会海外学习项目, 他们到过美国以外的30多个国家, from Argentina, Italy and Spain, to Czech Republic, Ghana, Peru and many more. 大多数毕业生来自宾夕法尼亚州, with New Jersey, 马里兰州和纽约州占了其余的大部分. 其他人则来自缅因州、佛罗里达州、加利福尼亚州等地. 他们加入了一个全球21,000多名校友社区. 毕业后他们将分散到南部的德克萨斯州, 西至华盛顿州，北至明尼苏达州, 而其他人将前往英国的海外地点, Ireland, France, Japan and Spain.
“你们每个人都在2019年8月完成了你从未想过的事情, 而你却在世界分崩离析的时候做了这些事,” Green said. “There are formidable challenges that become more daunting each day as they are fueled by factiousness and self-interest, but I remain hopeful for our future because what we need you have in abundance — resilience and fidelity, compassion and growth, perseverance and grace. 当你们作为真正的世界公民开始你们的旅程, embrace these gifts that have become a hallmark of your class and be the forces for good that you wish to see in the world.”