Boise State University honored summer and winter 2022 graduates with two commencement ceremonies at ExtraMile Arena on Dec. 17, 2022.
In all, 2,436 students were eligible for 2,833 degrees and certificates. The number of students eligible for graduation is a university record for a winter commencement ceremony.
Boise State President Dr. Marlene Tromp celebrated the students making it through the difficulties of the last four years, saying those hurdles will set graduates up for success in their next endeavors.
“There is quite literally no one in the world who has precisely the experience and gifts that you have,” said Dr. Tromp. “So imagine, pairing your singularity with the hardships of this period. You are on the path to an extraordinary destiny. You will be unstoppable.”
The morning ceremony featured student speaker Nya Nyapamba, a theatre arts major and an international business minor from Burundi, Africa. Nyapamba survived the Gatumba Massacre, where she lost an older brother and younger sister. She and her family emigrated to Boise when she was nine.
“No matter what happens when you set foot outside that door today, just know that there’s always a way,” said Nyapamba. “We might end up taking different routes or hit a brick wall or even worse, find out that things just aren’t working the way they were supposed to be. Don’t give up because the old norms that we are used to are constantly changing and this means that we are starting to think more analytically, outside the proverbial box, and finding other ways to get things done.”
The afternoon ceremony featured student speaker Jacob Allen, a nursing major who joined the School of Nursing’s pre-license program at the height of the pandemic in 2020. Despite the many challenges that he and the rest of his cohort faced, Allen thrived in this environment and completed 945 hours of clinical and simulation practice while maintaining a 4.0 GPA. He also worked for two years as a peer advisor for pre-nursing students.
Nyampamba, Allen and the rest of this year’s graduates now join more than 167,000 living alumni of Boise State University.