A Giant Leap

Every student’s journey toward a degree is unique. Sure, there are common experiences that everyone goes through, like trying to build the perfect class schedule, cramming for finals and balancing education with the rest of your life. But within those broad categories there are seemingly infinite chains of small decisions that take every student along their own path.

That’s why reading profiles of recent alumni is so rewarding. Someone who took exactly the same classes and got exactly the same degree as you probably had an experience nothing like yours.

The Class of 2020 is no exception. Although we should resist the temptation to think the current moment is “Unprecedented!” or “The worst ever!” it is fair to say the Class of 2020 faced some pretty stiff headwinds. A global pandemic, a sudden economic shock, widening political divisions, the struggle to have a voice and be heard, and a sobering rise in state-sanctioned violence.

But through it all, these students persisted. They overcame challenges, personal and communal, and they learned along the way.

Here we present stories of 15 member of the Class of 2020.