Nearly 700 members of the Norwalk Community College Class of 2011 paraded across the campus Thursday afternoon in their caps and gowns, on their way to being congratulated and sent on their way to a lifetime of continued learning. "I know that for many of you, it was no easy task to get here today," said NCC President David L. Levinson.
The graduation began with bagpipes, as grand marshal Tom Jackson led the students in. Gov. Dannel Malloy gave NCC's 50th anniversary commencement speech, honoring the investment that led to the building of the college as well as encouraging the students.
"We need you to be good citizens, to honor the governmental investments, investments in institutions like this, in a society that is increasingly becoming skeptical about making those kinds of investments," he said. "If you combine what will be a superior life because of your education with a superior level of giving back to your community, then all the people who have invested in you, the building of this institution, the subsidy of your degree will pay us back many fold."
Vennette "Neena" Perez spoke, illustrating the hardships some students overcame by telling her own story of child abuse, early pregnancy, a dead-end job and a domestic violence situation that "literally almost ended" in her murder. "It's an understatement to say Norwalk Community College has opened doors for me, because it has done more than that," she said. "This college has helped me, academically, socially, financially and helping me create a new career."
"This is the day when you realize that the graduation gown that you have been thinking about so long is actually real," said Bepin Mgushi, president of the student government. "You can touch it and you can feel it. This is the gown that makes us proud of ourselves, and makes our parents, our faculty, instructors, deans and president proud of us. This is the day where we say We Did It."
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