Queens College of the City University of New York held its 100th graduation ceremony on May 30th, with approximately 3,200 graduates and their families celebrating this significant milestone in their lives. Under the blessings and encouragements of the college president, professors, and community leaders, the graduates embarked on a new chapter in their lives. The public university in Flushing boasts a large number of Chinese graduates.
The graduation ceremony took place on the spacious lawn of Queens College, where graduates of different ethnicities moved the tassel on their mortarboards from right to left symbolizing the end of their university life at the institution and the beginning of new paths in life.
Chinese-American college president Frank Wu, Queens Borough President Donovan Richards, and City Council Member James F. Gennaro shared their life experiences and insights to inspire the graduates.
President Wu remarked that the journey of learning does not end here, but is a lifelong pursuit. He emphasized the college’s motto of “We learn so that we may serve,” encouraging the graduates to apply this principle in all aspects of their lives for their benefit.
Borough President Richards, speaking as the first college graduate in his family, highlighted the diversity at Queens College, emphasizing that diversity is the strength of the borough. He acknowledged the inequalities in the world but pointed out that education serves as a great equalizer. Richards advised the graduates to keep an open mind, as life may not always follow the paths they imagine, but every twist and turn holds potential and promise.
City Council Member Gennaro, who had taught at Queens College, left the graduates with a few words to remember: faith – providing moral guidance, family – cherishing the bonds of family as a sanctuary, and focus – staying focused to find one’s life path. He urged everyone with a quote from President Kennedy, “Do not pray for an easy life, pray to become a stronger person.”
The youngest daughter of Huang Youxing, the chairman of the New York Same Source Association, Huang Yingshan, also graduated from Queens College with a degree in film studies. Huang Youxing and his wife attended her graduation ceremony, where he shared words of encouragement for his daughter to keep learning and growing throughout life, emphasizing the importance of embracing challenges and learning from mistakes and failures.
Yanwen Feng, a Chinese student who has been in the United States for 10 years, graduated from Queens College with a master’s degree in Risk Management. She had studied Finance and Economics in her undergraduate program, also minoring in Accounting at the same college. Feng appreciated the flexibility of some courses at Queens College, allowing evening classes for further studies, which she found beneficial. She has already secured a job in accounting and attributed her smooth job search to the relevance of her professional studies.