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I am still on the highest of highs from our Class of 2020 graduation last week. What a day and night! As a student and as an academic, I have attended many a graduation ceremony in the past, but never known one so full of:
- Gratitude
- Resilience
- Accomplishment
- Determination
- Unity
- Admiration
- Tears
- Independence
- Overjoyment (is that a word? It is now!)
- NOISE!!
This was a year like no other. A year that we will always remember as being possibly the hardest of our lives so far. Life as we knew it was turned upside down, and I will forever be in awe of our incredible students for their resilience, tenacity, and determination to succeed, despite all the odds.
I was in the most privileged position this year, of experiencing graduation both as a member of staff for the Business School undergraduate graduation ceremony in the afternoon, and then as a graduate myself for the Postgraduate graduation ceremonies. I know first-hand how hard it has been to stay focused on our academic achievements over the last 18 months. Whilst managing the lockdown of the university and the impact it had on firstly our students, but also myself personally. I also managed to somehow complete my MA Hospitality and Event Management!
The main purpose of this post is to commend our students, and the staff who have supported them, for completing their degrees and making it to the most joyous day ever! We all needed this day, and it did not disappoint!
For me, the excitement really started to kick in when I walked to the robing area to get my “costume” (as my nine-year-old son calls it!) on. I found myself standing next to a student who I had taught three years before but had not seen since lockdown. That was it, all of the makeup I had lovingly prepared went to ruins as I felt the first of many tears of pride prick my eye. She turned around and saw me, and after a moment of “I know I know you, but this is out of context”, she shrieked, and a tear began to roll down her cheek too. As soon as we were robed, we jumped up and down in excitement and spent the very rushed next few minutes quickly catching up on life for the past three years and sharing congratulations and gratitude between us. And this was a theme that was repeated over and over and over again with every new student I bumped into, before and after the ceremonies. It filled my heart with happiness, and it ruined my mascara, but I would take that every day to feel that emotion.
I met with my fellow academics to walk in the procession through Wolverhampton. Standing in the Chancellor’s Hall with my colleagues, ready to walk a walk we had wanted to walk for so long, led by our two Heads of Department, I was the happiest I have been for the last 18 months. And that feeling stayed with me the whole time through.
Sitting on the stage, blinded by the lights, my hands were sore from all the clapping and my voice even more husky than normal with every cheer I let out, watching our students walking across the stage to own their moment and claim their achievement. Knowing what you had been through, across the board but individually too, was such an overwhelming feeling of pride, and that was obviously shared by their families whooping and screaming from the rafters. It was wonderful to see so much support and hear the calls and cries of appreciation, support, love, and comedy on some occasions. Sadly, this couldn’t be the case for all students. When I attended my own graduation ceremony in the evening, I was sat next to a student who I had taught, and who explained that her mother had travelled to England to come and see her graduate, however she had then been forced to isolate as the travel rules changed prior to the graduation ceremony. She was obviously so sad not to have any family there, but I was so proud of the way she dealt with it, and it was so lovely that other students heard this and together we reassured her that we would shout for her. And shout we did! As did other students, it was heart-warming to hear other students screaming for students because they had all been through this together. Unity, solidarity, and love abounded. It was perfect.
My moment of walking across the stage was the second proudest day of my life after giving birth to my son. My highest ever academic achievement, that I never ever dreamed I could achieve, achieved in the most difficult of times. So, it was only right that he was there to support me, and wow, I was so proud of him (apologies for the amount of times you have to read the word proud – I can hear my students telling me I should use a thesaurus and find another word so not to overuse the same word!). Dressed in his little shirt and waistcoat, he gave me the biggest hug before I went into the theatre and told me he was so – guess what? – yep, PROUD of me for today. Ahhhhh my heart!
When I walked – Or should I say, danced, yes, yes I did, it was my moment and I had worked HARD for this!) across the stage, as the deafening cheers and applause from my colleagues and students combined with the “YES BAB!” of my partner died down, I heard that little voice that is the most important voice of all shouting “I LOVE YOU MAMA!” Guess what – I cried…..!! Because for me, all of this is for him, he is my driving force, and my motivation and the reason that I never give up. And I know this is the case for my student parents too, so I’m going to take this moment to give a massive shout out to all of our students who are also parents, guardians and carers. Ours is an even more challenging fight, but I am forever in awe of my parent students, in particular, for their tenacity and desire to succeed, whilst raising a family and with others to think of before themselves.
If you have read this far, thank you so much for taking the time to do so. I was moved by our graduation for the Class of 2020 and I want to shout about it to the world! To all the students, staff and families and loved ones of those, CONGRATULATIONS on succeeding, achieving, and for never giving up on yourselves or each other. Roll on July 2022 when we graduate our Class of 2021 and I turn into Amanda the Panda once again!
