Erich Meslin ’24, M.S. ’25 Addresses Student Body at Commencement 2025

Good morning. Thank you all for being here today. On behalf of the Graduate & Professional Studies Class of 2025, I want to extend a warm and heartfelt thank you to the friends, mentors, coaches, faculty, and most of all, our families, who supported us every step of the way.

To our parents, siblings, grandparents, and so many loved ones: your encouragement, your sacrifices, and your steady presence have helped to carry us through countless long nights, big decisions, and difficult moments of uncertainty. Today is not only our graduation, but your celebration as well. There is no way we would be here without your support.

As I stand here for a second time, I’ve been thinking a lot about what it actually means to reach this milestone again. My learning journey at Stonehill took me from the depths of academic probation freshman year, to graduating with a master’s and having the opportunity to speak to you all today.

Graduation marks the end of one journey and the beginning of another. And while it’s tempting to solely direct our focus on what’s next: jobs, graduate school, new cities, and new responsibilities, I think it’s worth reflecting on how we got here. And that comes down to one word: effort.

There’s a quote I’ve come back to often during my time here. It’s from Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th president of the United States of America.

He said, “Nothing in the world is worth having or worth doing unless it means effort, pain, difficulty.”

Now that might sound a little intense. But I think he makes a great point.

Effort is what kept us going through those long nights when deadlines felt impossible to meet. It’s what showed up when we didn’t feel confident but decided to try our best anyway. Effort is what we put into our relationships, our classes, our jobs, and our communities. Effort isn’t always glamorous. It’s not always celebrated. But it matters a lot.

My fellow colleagues will tell you how much effort it took to complete this degree in one year! Graduate school requires a special kind of resilience in balancing a class load with real life. Factors such as shorter seven-week semesters, a rigorous capstone, and working with outside organizations, all contributed to our learning experience and required effort to master. 

Through 17 years of organized football, I’ve learned that effort doesn’t always show up on the scoreboard. Sometimes, it's grinding through practice when your body is sore. Sometimes it’s sprinting that last rep when no one is watching. And sometimes, it's getting knocked down, again and again, and choosing to get back up. 

Tom Brady said it best, “To be successful at anything. The truth is you don’t have to be special; you just have to be what most people aren’t. Consistent, Determined, and willing to work for it. No short cuts.” 

I think we could all learn something from the seven-time Super Bowl champ. 

Hard work beats talent when talent fails to work hard has always been a truth on and off the field. Effort is one of those things that is a choice. Effort is free. You cannot buy or fake effort. Real effort.

And as we move into our next adventure, I believe effort will matter more than ever. We may not always be the smartest person in the room, or the most experienced, or the most naturally gifted, but we can always choose to try to apply that extra effort. We can always choose to show up, to work hard, and to keep learning.

Because real success, the kind that lasts, isn’t achieved in one big moment. It’s built from small, consistent ones. It’s showing up when it’s hard. It’s caring enough to do our best. It’s being willing to fail and then try again.

To the Class of 2025, graduates and undergraduates, we have come through challenges we never saw coming. We’ve adapted. We’ve grown. And we’ve put in the work to be here today. That took effort that I know will follow you on your journey through life.

As we leave this campus and take our next steps into new jobs, new opportunities, or maybe some well-deserved rest, I hope we carry with us the belief that effort counts, that we are enough, and that even when the future feels uncertain, we are prepared.

Congratulations to the Class of 2025 in the Division of Graduate & Professional Studies. Thank you, and thank you again to all who helped us get here.