Student Representative Address: Dakiya Gray

First Giving Honor to God as the head of my life. To President Nunes, Provost Salva, Dr. Eells, the Board of Regents, to all the Deans, faculty, staff, families, to my family thank you so much for all of your support; and most importantly to the Class of 2020 We made it! My name is Dakiya Gray and I will be graduating today with a Bachelors in Childhood Education.

It is my pleasure to speak on behalf of the Class of 2020! These past four years have been filled with joy, blessings, lessons and growth. Though it may not have been the perfect ending that we all hoped and dreamed of…that doesn’t take away from our amazing accomplishment. First things first I want to say CONGRATULATIONS! I know how excited we all were to cross that stage today. I know how disappointing and challenging these times are. Being stuck in the house, not able to see your friends, and not able to end your college experience the way you dreamed, I completely understand. Most of us are home social distancing and some of us were sent back home halfway across the world. There will always be hard times in life, similar to what our world is facing right now. But with the help of our passion, purpose and service, we will rise up and face all odds that come against us.  We all miss each other SO MUCH!

Do you remember freshman year when we said goodbye to our parents for the first time? Who knew we would be saying hello to a new life that would open so many doors for us. That push,  for some of us to live on our own and  start a new life out of our hometown gave us the courage to mold ourselves into the young women and men that we are today. Snow days in the Rippe 250s included East Bamboo and movie nights in the lounge. I would love to relive those nights over and over again. Through tribulations we were able to develop the confidence and stability to preserve and find our passion for our future. We became matured individuals balancing school obligations was the first taste of adulthood. We began going to weekly Immersive fieldwork, Social Work field work, Nursing Clinicals, Rad Tech Clinicals, and internships. We started playing the part of an adult in our field.

We have studied so hard, and we have pulled many all-nighters; We each have worked so hard to get to where we are now. 11:59PM became one of the most intense times of the evening, I am sure all of my fellow classmates can understand that one. Rushing to complete the paper and assignments that were due at midnight but administered weeks before.

It is truly amazing that college helped us cross paths with so many different people from all walks of life. I am immensely grateful for the life-long friendships I have made, and I am sure we all are. 

Concordia College has always made me feel like I was standing in front of an arena filled with people who genuinely loved and supported me. To my friends, faculty, and staff thank you for all that you have done for me these past four years. College has a way of pulling out the best in you and surrounding you with people who will be in your life forever. I have fostered so many relationships with so many different people; Laura Brezovsky, Sarah Nunes and Mrs. Mo – thank you for helping me stay grounded and discovering a talent in me that I didn't even know I had. I want to salute each of you, my fellow classmates because we have come this far by faith. I encourage you to think back to how far you have come. Today marks the first day of new beginnings!  I am grateful for all of the many things we have accomplished, and I am #EXCITED for all of us to live out our lives pursuing our passion, purpose and service. God bless you all. Thank you.