Chris Gray, Ph.D.
Founding President, Erie County Community College of Pennsylvania
As another academic year comes to a close, I find myself reflecting on one of my favorite traditions at EC3, commencement.
Like many college presidents, I have the honor of standing at the podium and congratulating our graduates as they cross the stage, and each year, I enjoy that privilege more than I can say. But each year, I am also reminded that commencement is about so much more than degrees, certificates, and academic honors. Sure, that's important, but that view is too narrow and simplistic.
For me, graduation is about people.
More specifically, it is about what people bring.
Allow me to explain: most of the time, higher education trains its focus on outcomes. We talk about credentials, transfer pathways, workforce preparation, and career advancement. Those things matter, of course. They are important measures of success, and they help students build brighter futures for themselves and their families. That's an incomplete picture, however.
From my perspective, graduation also gives us an opportunity to look beyond the credential and to consider the human qualities that made this achievement possible in the first place. The biggest quality that I see when I look out across the room during commencement is grit.
This year's graduating class has shown me repeatedly that perseverance, courage, resilience, and determination come in many different forms. Those elements combine in a way that shows grit in action.
Some of our students arrived at EC3 directly from high school. Others returned to education after years away from the classroom. Some balanced coursework with careers and family responsibilities. Some overcame health challenges. Some were the first in their family to pursue higher education. Others navigated major life changes while continuing to pursue their goals.
Every graduate carried a different story, and those stories matter.
One student that I spoke with shared a story of years spent working in healthcare, manufacturing, construction, sales, and restaurants before finally deciding to return to college and pursue a new future. Another balanced family responsibilities while refusing to allow difficult circumstances to determine her future. Others came to EC3 as new Americans, bringing with them rich life experiences, diverse perspectives, and a determination to create new opportunities for themselves and their families. Their stories are different, but the qualities that carried them forward are remarkably similar.
In spite of all that life threw at them, they kept going. And when they walked across that stage, we celebrated with them.
Community colleges see this every day. For EC3, it's who we are.
Our students are not defined by a single path or a single experience. They represent every age group, every background, and every stage of life. They are parents, veterans, recent high school graduates, career changers, caregivers, and lifelong learners. Many are balancing responsibilities that would overwhelm most people.
Yet they continue to show up. That's persistence. That's grit.
That persistence is one of the reasons community colleges occupy such an important place in higher education. We meet students where they are, but we also challenge them to discover what they are capable of becoming.
The stories celebrated at commencement are not exceptions. They are examples of what happens when opportunity, support, and determination come together. We see them every day, and we are thrilled to be part of their story.
As I looked out at our graduates this year, I was struck by the strength of the community they had built together. Each graduate had overcome obstacles that were often invisible to those around them. Each had sacrificed something to reach this moment. Each had chosen to continue moving forward when it would have been easier to just stop.
That is worth celebrating.
It is also worth remembering.
The world often encourages us to define people by titles, finances, circumstances, or other labels. But the graduates who crossed our stage this year reminded me that what ultimately matters is not where our students start or what challenges they face along the way.
What matters is what they bring.
They bring effort.
They bring resilience.
They bring courage.
They bring hope.
Most importantly, they bring the willingness to keep growing.
That is what makes our graduates special. It is also what makes community colleges special. Every day, institutions like EC3 provide opportunities for students to discover strengths they may not have known they possessed and to transform potential into achievement.
As we celebrate the Class of 2026, I am grateful for the opportunity to witness those transformations firsthand.
Their stories inspire all of us. And, for one, I cannot wait to see what they bring next.
Our community. Your college.
