This was Governor Tina Kotek鈥檚 first time speaking at a graduation ceremony since she took office in 2023.
Kotek talked about her political career and the struggles she鈥檚 faced over the years. She also touched on the fraught political climate these students are headed into.
鈥淪kepticism and cynicism are not the same thing," she said. "And in times like these, I know that belief, instead of doubt, is absolutely essential to cultivate, both individually and in community with others.鈥�
Kotek also spoke about her experiences as a lesbian moving to Oregon, during a ceremony that coincided with LGBTQ pride month.
鈥淚 said yes to myself, believing in myself enough to build a life in a place where I could truly be me," she said. "And that was 1987 three years before I put an exclamation point on everything by coming out to my family.鈥�
Kotek was the first openly lesbian house speaker in the country when she took the position in the Oregon Legislature in 2013.
Kotek鈥檚 speech was milder than SOU鈥檚 student speaker, Parker Boom, who spoke about fighting against threats to free speech by authoritarian regimes.
"I urge all of us to embrace our active role in the making of the world, to be conscious of its direction, to witness and notice the shape of the Earth, the quality of light, to hurl ourselves against billionaires, fascists, oligarchs and regimes," Boom said. "To place ourselves to place ourselves between the sword and the neck, to insist on all of our lives. That work too is worthy of celebration."
The graduation ceremony took place on the same day as nationwide protests against the Trump Administration.
