Rice University Celebrates Class of 2024 as ‘More Resilient and Adaptive Than Ever’ at 111th Commencement Ceremony

During two days of festivities May 3-4, Rice University’s Class of 2024 graduates celebrated the culmination of their experiences on South Main while also looking forward to the bright futures that await them.

This year’s undergraduate commencement ceremony was led by Rice President Reginald DesRoches and featured remarks from astronaut and Rice alumna Peggy Whitson ’86, who currently serves as director of human spaceflight for Houston-based Axiom Space.

“Whether you approach your goals in life with an intricate plan laid out on spreadsheets and timelines or just a general plan with significant hand-waving, there are an infinite number of ways to get to your destination,” Whitson told the graduates gathered in Rice Stadium Saturday evening. “There is no one path for the unique journey each of you will make.”

Rice’s 111th commencement kicked off May 3 with an event to honor Master of Business Administration graduates from the Jones Graduate School of Business as well as a celebration event for the school’s first class of undergraduates. It was followed May 4 by both the doctoral commencement ceremony, where Ph.D. graduates celebrated their ascension to the highest level of postgraduate education, and the ceremony for recipients of advanced degrees at Tudor Fieldhouse.

Following the undergraduates’ ceremonial walk through Lovett Hall’s Sallyport and into Rice Stadium, they and their guests were welcomed by Rice Board of Trustees Chairman Robert T. Ladd and Dean of Undergraduates Bridget Gorman before DesRoches took to the podium to address those in attendance.

“To our graduates — you leave our campus well-prepared,” Ladd said. “You carry with you the legacy for all of us who came before you. You are the future of Rice. Help us to continue to make Rice even better in the years to come.”

‘Change and challenges are not meant to be feared but to be hurdled and overcome’

“I will forever have a special connection to this class,” said DesRoches, who started his tenure as provost and chief academic officer at Rice while many of this year’s graduates were freshmen. “You started pursuing your Rice degree during a pandemic that shook the way we and the world operated; you undoubtedly were robbed of precious moments to engage in person with others on campus. You also have been at Rice during an unbelievable time of transition: new leadership, new ways of teaching and learning born out of the pandemic, new buildings and a new Academic Quad.

“Yet here you are today, more resilient and adaptive than ever and ready to face life with the firsthand knowledge that change and challenges are not meant to be feared but to be hurdled and overcome.”

As the graduates stood ready to take on a new chapter in their lives, DesRoches emphasized the importance of reflecting not only on the academic knowledge they’ve gained but the lessons they’ve learned beyond the textbooks.

“Throughout your time here, you’ve embarked on a journey far greater than simply acquiring knowledge; you’ve learned invaluable lessons about life itself and hopefully about yourself,” he said. “You’ve encountered a myriad of situations that have tested your resolve, set you back, challenged your perceptions and pushed you beyond your comfort zones. Whether it was tackling a difficult assignment, navigating through personal struggles or grappling with uncertainty, each hurdle has been a lesson in resilience, adaptability and perseverance.”

In closing, DesRoches applauded the Owls’ persistence, talent, achievements and aspirations, highlighting the inspiration and hope they have provided to him and fellow faculty and staff.

“Remember, Owls are never alone,” DesRoches said. “Our more than 64,000 living alumni around the world are now a part of your extended family. Like you, they share immense pride in Rice and the accomplishments of all its graduates — you are now included.

“We look forward to welcoming you when you return, and we say to the great Class of 2024, congratulations.”

This year’s student speaker, Abhi Gorjala, spoke about the challenges his class encountered throughout its four years, highlighting the resolve and discipline his classmates displayed by thriving in spite of the struggles.

“Throughout the past four years, our class has encountered hurdles that have tested our resilience despite the most unique circumstances of any Rice University graduating class,” said Gorjala, a senior from McMurtry College. “Yet we’re not just standing here as graduates. We’re thriving.

“Today marks the first step on a path we’ve only just begun to build. Regardless of our path now, as Rice graduates we now have a responsibility to shape a better world.”

DesRoches introduced Whitson, who delivered a captivating speech that entailed her beginnings while growing up on a farm in Iowa, the experiences that led to her success as an astronaut and the many lessons she’s learned from her journey that she generously passed on to the lucky graduates — all while displaying numerous eye-popping photos on the video board of her awe-inspiring views while in space.

‘You are the only one who knows what is right for you’

Whitson shared stories of turning down a postdoctoral offer and advice from a highly esteemed professor to instead pursue her dream of being an astronaut, as well as being denied her first nine tries by the NASA selection committee before finally being accepted. Her primary messages to the graduates were to become “comfortable being uncomfortable” and to “expect the unexpected” while chasing their dreams.

“The path between you in these chairs and your future is not likely to be a straight line,” she said. “I don’t say that to scare you but instead to remind you to soak up the experiences along the way. It’s about the journey. Learn from the challenges, the flat-out failures and eventually the triumphs. It was much later in my life when I realized the real value of all those rejections.”

Whitson, who earned a doctoral degree in biochemistry from Rice, accumulated 675 days in space throughout her 37-year career, which is more than any other American astronaut or female astronaut in the world.

“Be open to taking on the tasks and the jobs that you’re not sure you can do,” she said. “If you only do the sure things where you know there’s no way to fail, you will never live up to your full potential.”

Whitson’s final message touched on the perspective that life can bring, highlighting some of the uncanny experiences she’s encountered throughout her career as an astronaut.

“Keep yourself open to the opportunities that will reset your perspective of life as you know it,” Whitson said. “This is not only true in the expansive space but on the comparatively microscopic or even atomic scale in each of our daily interactions. The accumulation of an understanding of diverse perspectives expands our ability to see and appreciate much more about what and especially who was around us. We are, after all, on board the same spaceship.

“You know what’s right for you. You are ready to follow an uncertain path. You will meet challenges head on and do so with the support of some amazing people. Keep it all in perspective. The universe awaits.”

Whitson’s speech was followed by the presentation of bachelor’s degree candidates. Degrees were then formally conferred, tassels turned and graduation caps blissfully tossed in the air. The graduates and all those supporting them joined voices to belt out Rice’s alma mater as an array of fireworks lit the sky above them.

“I want to extend our heartfelt appreciation to the guests in attendance tonight,” Gorman said. “Thank you for being here to recognize these graduates and their achievements, and thank you for all you have done along the way to help make this moment possible. To the graduating Class of 2024 — they say that every end has a new beginning, and so to each of you, best wishes on your new beginning and the road ahead.”