Illustration of John C. Bravman, President

Illustration: Joel Kimmel

Finding Your People

Commencement is the best day of the academic year, filled with the joy of students and families celebrating a milestone achievement. For graduates, it is the culmination of meeting four years of relentless challenges — academic and personal, small and large. While many factors must align to make this moment possible, our recent ceremony for the Class of 2024 was a beautiful testament to the powerful role that community plays in student success.

Times may change, but many of the difficulties faced by past generations of students are the same for today’s collegians. After I arrived at Stanford in 1975, I quickly discovered that I was completely unprepared. I had no idea how to study and nearly flunked out. The worst part, though, was feeling overwhelmed and alone on the huge campus, so far from my native New York.

I’m grateful that I found a mentor who gave me academic and career direction. The true key to my ability to stay in school and succeed, however, was connecting with a group of friends. Being part of a peer group with shared values and goals — put simply, ”finding my people” — saved my undergraduate experience and shaped the course of my life.

I thought about that at Commencement while listening to our keynote speaker, Nadia Sasso ’11. The daughter of immigrants, Nadia made the most of her time at Bucknell, leading student organizations and winning a $10,000 Projects for Peace grant to provide birth kits to expectant mothers in her parents’ native Sierra Leone, among other accomplishments. She went on to earn a master’s degree and a doctorate, and she established herself as a successful entrepreneur, storyteller and filmmaker who advances important cultural conversations about diversity.

Nadia Sasso with John Bravman wearing graduation gowns

Photo: Emily Paine

Nadia Sasso ’11 and President John Bravman at Bucknell’s 174th Commencement.

Nadia came to Bucknell through our partnership with the Posse Foundation, a nonprofit organization that identifies talented young scholar-leaders in urban areas across the country. Posse is built on the idea that we all need a support system, or “posse,” to succeed. In a competitive application process, the program recruits scholars and places them in groups of 10 to 12. Together they spend a year preparing for the adjustment to college life before they arrive at one of Posse’s nearly 100 partner schools, where they are mentored by dedicated faculty and staff.

In Bucknell’s 19 years of partnership with three Posse city programs, we have hosted 50 student cohorts. Nadia was part of our third Posse group from Washington, D.C., which she lauded in her speech. “Without this incredible support system, I can’t say for certain where I would be today,” she said. “I definitely would not have graduated Bucknell without my Posse. Together, we made a pledge that all 11 of us would enter and graduate as a college unit. And I’m proud to say that we achieved that goal — and that accomplishment speaks volumes about the power of community.”

Nadia’s gratitude for her Posse experience made me appreciate my own support system anew. I invite all Bucknellians to rededicate themselves to nurturing their connections, which only gain more importance as technology advances. When we lift each other up in a community of genuine care, there is no limit to what we can accomplish together.

John C. Bravman
President

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