'We need you now' Newark mayor tells Montclair State grads

The rain outside was not about to dampen the spirits of hundreds of Montclair State University graduates inside the Prudential Center in Newark on Thursday.

"It's finally over," said an elated Suheyla Tuncer of Clifton, who practically danced across the stage as she graduated with a degree in English with the hope of becoming a teacher. "I'm excited to start my life." 

Another chapter has closed for more than 5,000 MSU undergraduate and graduate students this week.

The graduate school commencement was held Monday night at NJPAC in Newark.

On Thursday morning, it was the undergraduates' turn. As many of them wore caps decorated with lights, glitter, flowers and even movie quotes, they walked across the stage in front of faculty, friends and family, to receive degrees in studies across arts, education, human services, humanities, science, math and business. 

Repeating the word "courage," in her remarks, MSU President Susan A. Cole told the grads, "You must never let anything stand between you and your future. Never give up on yourself."

It was a message that seemed to reverberate with Newark Mayor Ras J. Baraka, who received an honorary degree, Doctor of Humane Letters, during Thursday's commencement. Baraka told the graduating class he would never have imagined himself as Newark's 40th mayor and the recipient of an MSU honorary degree. 

"Think of today as a collective effort of the sheer will of a larger community to see that the sun rose on this day," observed the mayor.

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In taking a more political tone, he told the grads to "build bridges and not walls," and "to have the courage to say that black lives matter because all lives matter." 

Baraka, who has degrees in political science, history and education supervision, told the grads they're essential to help achieve equal pay for women, eradicate diseases, and build stronger economies and a better planet. 

"We need you now to be brilliant, to be outstanding, to be impossible, to be extraordinary. We need you to take what you've gathered on this journey, all that you have learned, and use it to transform this world," he said. "We need you now more than we ever did before." 

"The power that you get ... how will you use it?" Baraka rhetorically asked.

Some graduates used words such as "cool" and "beautiful" to describe his speech. 

"It brought me to tears," said Jaden Jackson, a Montclair resident who majored in political science and jurisprudence, and hopes to find a job in immigration law. He was especially moved by Baraka's messages about racial and gender equality.

Tony-award winning choreographer, tap dancer and actor Savion Glover also received an honorary degree, a Doctor of Fine Arts. 

"We are all artists. Some of us are yet to be diagnosed," the Newark native and former Montclair resident told the crowd. "We all see the world through our eyes."

"I encourage you to live and be accountable for your life," Glover said.

Borrowing words from a friend who was in the audience, he said: "It's life. No one is getting out of here alive. So live it to the fullest, and have fun."

That's just what many of the newly conferred students intend to do. 

"It's scary but so exciting to finally be out there. This whole thing is just amazing," said Dakota Hallahan of Wrightstown, who graduated with a degree in theater studies. 

Hallahan said he was thankful for the opportunity to make new friends, and acknowledged he'll miss being with his peers the most post-college. 

"This is not over," he said assuredly. "This is just the beginning." 

Email: gray@northjersey.com

On the web

Watch a video from the MSU graduation and see more photos from the ceremony. Visit njersy.co/MSUgrad17