Student Union
- By Pete Musto
Advice from Graduation Speakers: Eat a Good Breakfast
This time of year, many college and university graduates sit patiently through long graduation ceremonies, fanning themselves in the heat and waiting for the main event: a movie star, celebrity, politician or world leader to deliver words of wisdom.
It's graduation season, meaning many colleges and universities feature speakers who are well-known or well-respected for their accomplishments. The speaker's role is to offer graduates advice about launching into the world.
This year's speeches have been delivered by people such as Chadwick Boseman of the Black Panther superhero movie, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine LaGarde, former U.S. Secretary of State and oil executive Rex Tillerson, and America's wealthiest African-American woman and celebrity, Oprah Winfrey.
"You need to know this: Your job is not always going to fulfill you," Winfrey said to graduates at the University of Southern California Annenberg School of Communications and Journalism.
"There will be some days that you just might be bored. Other days you may not feel like going to work at all," she said. "Go anyway, and remember that your job is not who you are. It's just what you are doing on the way to who you will become. With every remedial chore, every boss who takes credit for your ideas — that is going to happen — look for the lessons, because the lessons are always there."
She also advised students to "eat a good breakfast."
Tillerson spoke to graduates at the Virginia Military Institute in Lexington, Virginia, telling them to be grateful for the people who helped them succeed, such as parents and teachers.
He also talked about democracy, transparency and truth.
"It is only by a fierce defense of the truth and a common set of facts that we create the conditions for a democratic free society," Tillerson said. "If our leaders seek to conceal the truth or we as people become accepting of alternative realities that are no longer grounded in facts, then we as American citizens are on a pathway to relinquishing our freedom."
Boseman, star of the blockbuster 2018 Black Panther film, spoke at Howard University in Washington, D.C. — the school from which he graduated, known as a graduate's alma mater. (Former U.S. President Barack Obama spoke to Howard grads in 2016.)
Howard is a leader among historically black colleges and universities, or HBCU, in the U.S., but was recently involved in a corruption scandal involving student aid money. Boseman referred to the scandal and other problems facing students, especially African-Americans.
"Many of you will leave Howard and enter systems and institutions that have a history of discrimination and marginalization," he said.
But, Boseman suggested, those problems can make them better people.
"I don't know what your future is," he said. "But if you're willing to take the harder way … the one with more failures at first than successes . . . then you will not regret it. … Remember the struggles along the way are only meant to shape you for your purpose."
Winfrey encouraged students to vote and take action.
"Pick a problem, any problem, and do something about it," she said. "Because to somebody who's hurting, something is everything."
IMF's Lagarde asked graduates at Claremont McKenna College in Claremont, California, to look further into the future to consider what effect their next choices and actions will have.
She asked the graduates to think about how different the world is now compared to 10 years ago, and how different it may be in 10 years.
"What kind of country, what kind of world, will you help build?" she asked. "What values will you respect? What will drive your life and the lives of others? Ten years from now, when the class of 2028 stands here and prepares to graduate, what will you have done to help them?"
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Trump administration opens antisemitism inquiries at 5 colleges, including Columbia and Berkeley
The Trump administration is opening new investigations into allegations of antisemitism at five U.S. universities including Columbia and the University of California, Berkeley, the Education Department announced Monday.
It's part of President Donald Trump's promise to take a tougher stance against campus antisemitism and deal out harsher penalties than the Biden administration, which settled a flurry of cases with universities in its final weeks. It comes the same day the Justice Department announced a new task force to root out antisemitism on college campuses.
In an order signed last week, Trump called for aggressive action to fight anti-Jewish bias on campuses, including the deportation of foreign students who have participated in pro-Palestinian protests.
Along with Columbia and Berkeley, the department is now investigating the University of Minnesota, Northwestern University and Portland State University. The cases were opened using the department's power to launch its own civil rights reviews, unlike the majority of investigations, which stem from complaints.
Messages seeking comment were left with all five universities.
A statement from the Education Department criticized colleges for tolerating antisemitism after Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and a wave of pro-Palestinian protests that followed. It also criticized the Biden administration for negotiating "toothless" resolutions that failed to hold schools accountable.
"Today, the Department is putting universities, colleges, and K-12 schools on notice: this administration will not tolerate continued institutional indifference to the wellbeing of Jewish students on American campuses," said Craig Trainor, the agency's acting assistant secretary for civil rights.
The department didn't provide details about the inquiries or how it decided which schools are being targeted. Presidents of Columbia and Northwestern were among those called to testify on Capitol Hill last year as Republicans sought accountability for allegations of antisemitism. The hearings contributed to the resignation of multiple university presidents, including Columbia's Minouche Shafik.
An October report from House Republicans accused Columbia of failing to punish pro-Palestinian students who took over a campus building, and it called Northwestern's negotiations with student protesters a "stunning capitulation."
House Republicans applauded the new investigations. Representative Tim Walberg, chair of the Education and Workforce Committee, said he was "glad that we finally have an administration who is taking action to protect Jewish students."
Trump's order also calls for a full review of antisemitism complaints filed with the Education Department since Oct. 7, 2023, including pending and resolved cases from the Biden administration. It encourages the Justice Department to take action to enforce civil rights laws.
Last week's order drew backlash from civil rights groups who said it violated First Amendment rights that protect political speech.
The new task force announced Monday includes the Justice and Education departments along with Health and Human Services.
"The Department takes seriously our responsibility to eradicate this hatred wherever it is found," said Leo Terrell, assistant attorney general for civil rights. "The Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism is the first step in giving life to President Trump's renewed commitment to ending anti-Semitism in our schools."
- By VOA News
STEM, business top subjects for international students
The Times of India breaks down the most popular subjects for international students to study in the U.S.
STEM and business lead the pack. Read the full story here. (January 2025)
- By VOA News
Safety and visa difficulties among misconceptions about US colleges
U.S. News & World report addresses some of the misconceptions about U.S. colleges and universities, including the difficulty of getting a visa.
Read the full story here. (January 2025)
- By VOA News
Work opportunities help draw international students to US schools
US News & World Report details the three top factors in foreign students' decision to study in the U.S. They include research opportunities and the reputation of U.S. degrees. Read the full story here. (December 2024)
- By VOA News
British student talks about her culture shock in Ohio
A British student who did a year abroad at Bowling Green State University in Ohio talks about adjusting to life in America in a TikTok video, Newsweek magazine reports.
Among the biggest surprises? Portion sizes, jaywalking laws and dorm room beds.
Read the full story here. (December 2024)
