NCCC holds 46th commencement

WINSTED — Graduates had their eyes on the future as Northwestern Connecticut Community College (NCCC) held its 46th commencement ceremony Thursday, May 24, at East End Park. Friends and families filled the park to witness 182 students graduate.“This is a small college that does great things,” college President Barbara Douglass said at the beginning of the commencement ceremony. “We gather today to honor our graduates. All of our graduates are special. Each one of them has a unique story to tell.”Douglass noted that the 182 graduates were diverse in their studies and were all graduating with a wide range of degrees, including American sign language, criminal justice, fine arts, veterinary technology and, for the first time in its history, 19 students graduated from the college’s nursing program.In her speech, Douglass quoted writer Ralph Waldo Emerson in order to give a “holistic definition of success”.“Success is to laugh often and much,” Douglass said. “Success is to win the respect of intelligent people and impression of children. Success is to earn the appreciation of honest critics and to endure the betrayal of false friends. Success is to appreciate beauty and to find the best in others. As Tom Brokaw once said, anyone can make a buck, but not everyone can make a difference. As you take this educational step towards success, I encourage you to make a difference. As many of you know first hand, life does sometimes gives you a second chance.”Graduate Catrina Sclafani, a human services major, gave the class speech at the commencement ceremony.“For many of us, our college journey is over,” Sclafani said. “We need to remember all of the challenges, tribulations and good friends that we met along the way. Aside from a parent, nobody makes more sacrifices than a college student does. We discuss things at all hours of the night, drink more caffeine than should be legal and we study all night just to keep on top of our tests and papers. We sacrifice time to our friends and family and we choose to spend half of our days to listen to a lecture rather than doing something that we love. There were points in my time here where I asked myself if it was really worth it. It wasn’t until this ceremony until I finally believed that it is indeed worth it.”Congressman John B. Larson (D-1) gave the commencement speech for the ceremony and gave the graduates words of encouragement.“Every single one here should be proud of yourselves, because you are among the successes at Northwestern,” Larson said. “You have all made incredible sacrifices to achieve this goal. Some of you juggled one or two part-time jobs in order to achieve this goal. Some of you spent nights and weekends away from your families to complete your courses and to hand your assignments in on time. Whatever your situation, today you all reap your rewards of your hard work. I know that all of you parents out there are proud of the accomplishments of your sons and daughters. To you, time seems to have gone by so quickly. Yet here they are, the accomplished graduates.”Larson said a college diploma represents new ways of seeing the world.“But the skills that you have developed here are of immeasurable value,” Larson said. “The absolute dignity that comes from a hard earned education is something nobody can take away from you.”