CU Boulder graduates 9,518 students in virtual spring commencement

Katie Langford, Daily Camera, Boulder, Colo.
·2 min read

May 6—University of Colorado Boulder students, families, faculty and staff celebrated virtual spring commencement on Thursday for the second — and hopefully final — year.

While a normally packed Folsom Field sat empty, the names of 9,518 graduating students scrolled on a virtual livestream. Students and family members took to social media to share photos of graduates in full regalia in front of the Flatirons or wearing their caps while watching the ceremony from the couch.

The cause of the virtual ceremony also came up in speeches given by university officials, students and commencement speaker Dwinita "Nita" Mosby Tyler, founder of The Equity Project.

Chancellor Phil DiStefano praised the graduating class for their advocacy for social change and racial equality as well as overcoming challenges brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.

This graduating class, DiStefano said, has persevered through one of the toughest times in CU Boulder's 145-year history.

"You are living through something right now that will define your generation," DiStefano said. "This is your generational moment. How you meet these challenges will define your legacy."

Senior Class Council President Allie Reuter spoke about losing a friend when she was a sophomore and how she is daily reminded of the things he taught her, including the things she values.

"One thing my friend helped me realize that someone's true values are revealed by how they spend their time," she said. "I ask each of you to consider two things — do you know what you value in life, and do your actions demonstrate your values?"

Reuter told the Camera the friend she lost in her sophomore year died by suicide.

"He really changed the course of my life and the things I cared about, and I really wanted to honor him and remember his legacy through my speech today," she said. "I really want to make him proud."

After speaking about growing up in the segregated South and feeling, at times, like the world was not made for her, Tyler encouraged the graduating class to be the architects of their own futures.

"This is the moment, the moment where you take the important next step in your journey, the moment where you take your place in the world," she said. "You have a prestigious degree and have achieved an extraordinary accomplishment, now go architect your future."