{"id":96619,"date":"2024-10-18T16:54:54","date_gmt":"2024-10-18T20:54:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/?p=96619"},"modified":"2024-10-18T17:57:34","modified_gmt":"2024-10-18T21:57:34","slug":"gallery-grads-encouraged-to-discover-opportunity-in-uncertainty","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/2024\/10\/gallery-grads-encouraged-to-discover-opportunity-in-uncertainty\/","title":{"rendered":"GALLERY: Grads encouraged to discover opportunity in uncertainty"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cRemarkable times are the context in which remarkable people and remarkable communities develop.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019s the message Associate Professor of Sport Management Kyle Rich shared with Brock\u2019s newest graduating class during the morning ceremony of the University\u2019s 116th Convocation on Friday, Oct. 18.<\/p>\n

During his address, Rich reflected on how different life was when graduates began their degrees four years ago \u2014 and how extraordinary it is that they completed their academic journey during such unprecedented times.<\/p>\n

In March 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the COVID-19 outbreak a global health emergency. Life came to a grinding halt, and post-secondary institutions around the world \u2014 Brock included \u2014 temporarily transitioned to a virtual learning model.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe early years of your studies will be marked as some of the most precarious, difficult and disrupted times of recent memory,\u201d Rich said. \u201cOn a scale not felt in decades, we lived a collective experience that changed the way we saw the world and understood our relationships with the individuals, the groups and institutions that make up our communities.\u201d<\/p>\n

Choosing to pursue their degrees during a global pandemic was a \u201cbold and courageous choice\u201d Rich said. Overcoming the unique challenges of doing so, he added, shaped the graduating class into \u201cresilient, thoughtful and empathetic critical thinkers\u201d who are prepared to tackle anything their futures hold.<\/p>\n

With the support of friends, family and a community of more than 120,000 Brock alumni in their corner, this year\u2019s graduates are sure to see their futures take them to \u201cremarkable\u201d places, said Rich.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs you set out in your next steps, I hope you use these experiences, knowledge and the connections you\u2019ve made to inform how you move through the world and make your communities a better place for all of us to live,\u201d he said. \u201cYou\u2019ve already achieved remarkable things, and I hope you use those achievements as a platform to build remarkable futures.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Assistant<\/a>

Assistant Professor of Computer Science Ali Emami gave the address during the afternoon ceremony of Brock\u2019s 116th Convocation on Friday, Oct. 18.<\/p><\/div>\n

The idea of finding opportunity in uncertainty was echoed in Assistant Professor of Computer Science Ali Emami\u2019s address during Friday\u2019s afternoon ceremony.<\/p>\n

Graduation often comes with a range of mixed emotions, he said. While there is joy, pride and excitement, the experience itself can also feel \u201canticlimactic\u201d as graduates come to the realization that this chapter of their lives is over and begin to ponder what comes next.<\/p>\n

Emami encouraged the newest Brock grads to reframe that uncertainty as anticipation \u2014 remembering that while this milestone is worth celebrating, it is only the first of many more to come.<\/p>\n

To illustrate his point, Emami reflected on the personal health journey he began nearly eight years ago when he committed to running on the treadmill every day.<\/p>\n

While some days were easier than others \u2014 and there were many times he admitted to wanting to throw in the towel \u2014 he never missed a run.<\/p>\n

\u201cI never skipped a day. No matter how ill I was, if it was a pandemic and I had to do it at home, how hard the day was, I continued,\u201d he told the graduating class.<\/p>\n

That determination soon trickled into every facet of his life \u2014 whether it was drafting an email or writing a research paper. He said his experience crystallizes that life is a journey, and he encouraged graduates to \u201cfall in love with that, rather than the destination.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cToday marks the end of your academic treadmill run and it was very hard; you\u2019ve striven, you\u2019ve toiled, heck, you\u2019ve stumbled and fallen, but you\u2019ve risen up and you\u2019ve finished that run,\u201d he said. \u201cThat sensation is not disappointment, it\u2019s actually the best version of you that knows that you have so many more runs in you than just this one; I see thousands of runs for you.\u201d<\/p>\n

View recordings of the day\u2019s Convocation ceremonies at brocku.ca\/livestream<\/a><\/p>\n\n\t