Congratulations, Class of 2017!

Fearlessness and the modern message of an English degree summed up English Department Head Andreea Ritivoi’s message at the May 20 diploma ceremony.
 
“If or when you find yourself afraid, remember that fear is a mark of intelligence, of awareness and of humbleness,” Ritivoi said. “Those are your defining characteristics, and the qualities of a true intellectual leader.”
 
Social urgency, finding placement in the world post-Carnegie Mellon University, and gratitude were weaved throughout the speeches and the graduating class.

“What amazes me about our class of 2017 is their intellectual sophistication and broad-mindedness, coupled with deep social responsibility and an awareness of today’s difficult problems,” Ritivoi said.
 
For Katie Henry, who received her master’s degree in rhetoric, the 2016 presidential election formed her time at CMU.
 
“Our experience with the election in the fall is one of many examples of how our education in rhetoric has prepared us to think deeply and critically about the world surrounding us, showing us the structures and theories that help explain so much about the ways people communicate with each other,” Henry said. “While the 2016 election raged on and saturated the media, we studied race and enemy construction, the motives and structures behind propaganda, the art and arrangement of argument, the rhetoric of science, and the irreversible impacts of new media.”
 
With the guidance of faculty and staff, students were able to maneuver through social shifts and discover why English majors are societally important.
 
“The first class I ever took in creative writing was my freshman seminar, Creative Writing Matters, taught by Jim Daniels,” said Emmett Eldred, who graduated with a major in creative writing and additional majors in professional writing, and ethics, history and public policy. “Four years later, I know that this is true: Creative writing matters, because creative writers master two skills from which the world around us suffers a major deficit. The first is listening. The other skill is expression.”
 
Professional writing graduate Shaune Marx believes the versatility of her degree is what will help her most after graduation.
 
“When I got to CMU, I still hadn’t figured out what I wanted to be,” said Marx, who graduated with an additional major in creative writing. “This program has outfitted all of us with more flexibility than any other program I know of, and that is truly the beauty of the professional writing major. With this degree, we don’t have to come up with one definitive answer for what we want to be when we grow up. We can change our answers again and again, until we finally find an answer that fits us and our diverse passions.”