Sydney Turk

Good morning fellow graduates, faculty, friends and family. Welcome, and thank you for taking time out of your day to attend this celebration. I’d like to begin by speaking directly to my fellow graduates. Today we are here to celebrate you. Today we celebrate the grit, perseverance and strong will that led you here. Believe me, I know that getting to graduation was not an easy task. I know over the last four years you experienced many tears, sleepless nights and nightmarish midterms. So be proud of yourself. Shout it from the rooftops, call your relatives, wear your graduation gown to the supermarket if you want to. Be proud. After all, we not only earned a diploma proving our commitment to higher education, but we also experienced significant growth in every aspect of our lives.

No matter how different that growth might look to each of us, and no matter how we might continue to grow apart, in many ways we grew together. We grew because of shared experiences to which we can all relate. I’m sure most of us relate to circling the parking lot like a hawk, hoping a spot will appear out of thin air (ideally with the correct permit color). How about wondering if Tobor actually ever makes it across the crosswalk to its destination. (I’ve still never seen that happen.) What about slipping on the ice outside of McDermott Library after a freeze? Picking up your things and heading inside to stand awkwardly outside of a study room, waiting for it to free up? And lastly, we all probably can relate to the frantic sprint across campus when you’re running late. The culprit: forgetting to buy a blue exam book from the bookstore with quarters found at the bottom of your bag.

Cherish these moments and hold them deep and close to your heart. After all, while some of us may return to UTD to pursue other ventures, for many this may be one of the last times you set foot on campus. A door is closing behind us, but in front of us, many more will open.

Although I love the doors a diploma opens for me, I love the experiences I’ve had here even more. It’s crazy to think that if I had never applied to UTD I would not be who I am today. I like to think the butterfly effect is responsible for that: so many tiny, seemingly insignificant moments that led me right here, to this one. For example, if I hadn’t decided to spontaneously apply as a transfer student, I wouldn’t have signed up for a Women in Management course. And then I wouldn’t have sat next to a girl that would become one of my best friends, and she wouldn’t have encouraged me to become a teacher. I would have never sat in AJ Crowell’s office to fill out the Teacher Development Center paperwork. I would never have discovered my passion for teaching. I could go on and on about how my life changed since taking my first step on campus. I say all of this to encourage you to think about the decisions that led you to this day, and where those small moments might lead you tomorrow.

I want to leave you with one more note. I know I’ve already encouraged you to think about your journey and find those special moments you can cherish, but I also want to acknowledge the fact that many of the twists and turns in my own journey were uncertain and unexpected. When we hear these two words, uncertain and unexpected, we often think of them as negative things. In our college careers, we are told over and over about how we need to have a plan, we need to think it through, and we need to know exactly when and where the light at the end of the tunnel will be.

However, my transfer to UTD was unexpected. I applied on the very last day of the deadline. My future was uncertain; I had no backup plan. And it turned out to be the best decision I ever made. My student teaching placement was unexpected. I told myself I never wanted to teach younger grades, and I was uncertain when I was placed in a second-grade classroom. Instead of feeling relief and joy about finding a placement, I was scared. But standing here now, with only three days left to teach in that classroom, I couldn’t be happier with how I grew into my role as a second-grade teacher.

Instead of letting fear hold you back, embrace the unexpected, the uncertain and the unconventional. Hidden inside something you didn’t plan for might be the opportunity that unlocks your brightest future.

Thank you for listening, and congratulations, fellow graduates!

Sydney Turk is graduating with a bachelor’s in interdisciplinary studies with foundations in education and behavioral science, and a concentration in teaching. She is pursuing her early childhood through sixth-grade teaching certification through UT Dallas’ Teacher Development Center. She also graduates summa cum laude and with interdisciplinary major honors. She will begin her first semester as a first-grade, dual-language teacher for Wylie ISD in January.