College Voices
A Pair of Shoes Becomes Inspiration for University Commencement Speech
In the spring commencement speech at the University of Northern Colorado, a pair of shoes was used to inspire students that they are capable of success regardless of what shoes they are wearing.
Student body president, Tim Hernández, reflected on a time when he had expressed interest in writing to his 8th grade English teacher just a week before his 8th grade continuation. He went on to describe her reaction as appalling. She had told him that people like him didn’t grow up to be writers. This attack on his self-confidence only strengthened his motivation to find success in his future.
For his 8th grade continuation, Hernández received his first pair of dress shoes from his father to wear in the ceremony. His shoes were too big at the time and allowed him to continue wearing them in the years to come. The words his teacher had said to him about his dream of writing, stuck with him as did his pair of shoes.
Hernández proclaimed in his commencement speech four years later that he was proud to be wearing the same pair of shoes he had worn in his 8th grade continuation. He will graduate soon as an English major, focusing on education and soon be living his dream that had been crushed in years past.
Hernández’s success promotes his message directed to students from all over the world. Though some may have been told that they are not capable of success, it has only strengthened their motivation to succeed. He says we should invest in those people because there is success in everyone’s future if they believe and invest in it. With every challenge, we become stronger.