Ithaca College celebrated its 131st Commencement on Sunday, awarding degrees to approximately 1,000 undergraduate students while speakers encouraged graduates to embrace uncertainty, adapt to change, and engage thoughtfully with others in an evolving world.
The ceremony recognized graduates from the college’s five schools and centered on themes of dialogue, resilience, and personal growth.
Keynote speaker Ana Wilkowski, a 1995 graduate of the School of Business, encouraged members of the Class of 2026 to take risks and remain open to new experiences.
Wilkowski reflected on arriving in the United States from Mexico as an international student through the Institute of International Education, recalling the uncertainty she faced while adapting to a new culture and language. She said her father encouraged her to embrace the unknown by asking a simple question: “Why not?”
“I didn’t realize it at the time, but he was encouraging me to take a leap into the unknown, to embrace uncertainty, and to get comfortable being uncomfortable,” Wilkowski said.
After graduating from Ithaca College, Wilkowski built a career in finance on Wall Street before co-founding Performance Optimal Health with her husband and fellow alumnus, Todd Wilkowski.
During her address, she compared today’s rapid advancements in artificial intelligence to the emergence of the internet during the 1990s, telling graduates that every generation faces technological and cultural change.
“But just as we adjusted, you will too,” she said. “You will adapt. You will learn to live with it and to embrace it.”
Wilkowski also emphasized the lasting value of communication and personal connection, crediting her Ithaca College education with helping prepare her for a changing world.
Closing her remarks, she returned to her father’s advice, encouraging graduates to “leap into the unknown” and ask themselves, “Why not?” when facing fear or self-doubt.
Throughout the academic year, Ithaca College focused on the theme of dialogue, encouraging students to engage with differing perspectives and difficult conversations with openness and empathy.
College President La Jerne Terry Cornish connected that theme to this year’s Commencement medallion quotation from writer and civil rights activist James Baldwin: “Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.”
“Change demands that we face challenges rather than avoid them, that we confront injustice rather than ignore it, and that we engage others with humility and compassion even when it’s difficult,” Cornish said.
Student speaker Lili Chalfant, who earned a degree in Writing for Film, Television, and Emerging Media, encouraged classmates to value meaningful connections and recognize the importance of dialogue.
Chalfant said life rarely follows a carefully written script and that some of the most meaningful moments are often unexpected.
“Dialogue only works when someone has the courage to speak,” Chalfant said, “and when someone else has the kindness to listen.”
The ceremony also included honorary degree presentations recognizing former Tompkins County Commissioner of Whole Health Frank Kruppa for his leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic, and Robert Moss for his contributions to theater and arts education.
