I want to tell you about a moment that would have almost stopped me from crossing this very stage.

I want to tell you about a moment that would have almost stopped me from crossing this very stage. Today, I stand here as many things. First, as a son of a single immigrant Haitian mother who died young, and now the adopted son of a single immigrant father who I owe my life to. Second, I might be a confident young man today, but I once doubted my very ability to make it this far. And third, a mirror. A reflection to those of you who are sitting in these seats and have had to endure to get to this point. We all have our stories. Coming from an abused past and the foster care system, I became acquainted with struggle and loss very early in my life. Before I graduated high school, I had been put back in the system for the third time and I had also lost my mother. This among so many other obstacles only added to the difficulty of me seeing and believing in my potential. I came to UMass Dartmouth through the College Now program, an opportunity designed for students who are still discovering that said potential. I was given a simple requirement: earn a 2.0 GPA. And despite that wonderful opportunity, I didn't meet it. Not because I couldn't, but because I didn't take it seriously enough. When I found out that I might be dismissed, I had to tell my father, and in that moment I felt shame. Not just because I was failing, but because this was the man who had sacrificed so much, taking up so many shifts to take me in from the system and give me a place to call home. I realized there was no backup plan, no safety net. If this didn't work out, I wouldn't just disappoint myself, but those who had poured into me and saw what I couldn't. That conversation forced me to choose: remain a shadow of my potential, or become the person those who believed in me already saw. I chose to become more. But as many of you here who are sitting with me today know, choosing growth doesn't instantly give you confidence. Walking in the room, little voices in the back of your head will tell you, you don't belong here, you aren't smart enough to be here. A million thoughts went through my mind that all meant the same thing: that I couldn't do it. Behind the comic exterior, I felt siloed and considered giving up more times than I can count. But instead of leaving, I leaned in. I asked for support. I got involved on campus, meeting the wonderful peers that sit in front of me here today, and through organizations like the Black Student Union, the Haitian American Student Association, Mwen Ayisyen. I became a College Now peer mentor for students who were sitting in the same seat that I once sat. And that's when I learned something that changed everything for me.