Madelin Richards is graduating with a degree in Nursing and Associate University Honors. Madelin gave one of the student addresses at the Fall Honors Day ceremony on Thursday, December 5th.
“Friends, family, loved ones, staff, and fellow graduates:
I want to welcome you, thank you, and congratulate you on this achievement and I am honored to be standing here in front of you today.
I want to take a second and especially thank both of my parents for all of their constant support these last 3.5 years. I would not have achieved so much throughout my undergraduate career if it were not for your guidance, love, and endless patience.
Today is a day of reflection on everything the Honors Program has done for me and the rest of its students. There is a sense of community and comfort here that I have felt and been honored to be apart of since the day I stepped foot on campus in 2021.
The purpose of the Honors Program is to enhance learning opportunities, encourage leadership, and promote professional development. These values were adopted by the NIU Honors Program in order to hold students to a higher standard and to push each of them beyond their comfort zones.
A great example of that is what I am up here doing today. 3.5 years ago, I never thought that I would be courageous enough to give a speech to a room full of people. However, over the last few years, my confidence and leadership skills have grown significantly, and I owe great thanks to the Honors Program for that.
I spent two years as an Honors Fellow and this position opened me up to a variety of different opportunities, like volunteering at Tails Humane Society, becoming a student success tutor in the nursing program, and even pushed me to pursue an internship at a hospital that luckily landed me an RN job following graduation. One of my favorite aspects of being an Honors Fellow was advising my peers and following their academic and personal growth throughout the year.
There were also plenty of opportunities for fun, like Honors movie night, karaoke night, Lorado Taft retreats in 100 degree heat, and plenty of Honors Fellow bonding. The relationships I built with the other honors fellows and staff over those two years will be those that I will always remember and be thankful for.
I want to especially thank the Honors staff and advisors for their constant support. You have helped carve a pathway for each student, encouraging each of us to explore our greatest interests and allowing us to be original. I also want to say thank you for being a resource that so many students feel comfortable turning to. You all uphold the values of this program and provide a sense of community to every student.
Community. That is what I think of when I reflect on what the Honors Program has meant to me. It never mattered where you came from or what your plans are because here, we are all Huskies.
Congratulations to my fellow graduates on this achievement. I hope that we all end our undergraduate careers, thankful for all of the opportunities we had, friendships that we formed, and memories that were made. It is also my hope that we all graduate with the intention of utilizing everything that we have learned while in this program and while at NIU.
I am beyond grateful to have been a part of the Honors Program at Northern Illinois University and I look forward to my next chapter. My appreciation for this program is greater than words can say.
Thank you.”
