On July 10, GTIIT Commencement for Graduates 2023 was held at the Gym of South Campus. 2023 undergraduate representative Li Yitong delivered a speech.

My name is Li Yitong and it is my great honor to deliver the commencement address before you today. Firstly, please allow me to express my sincerest congratulations to the extraordinary class of 2023! It is no secret that we have proven ourselves one of the most resilient classes in GTIIT history. We have fought battles, both known and unknown by those around us. And I am so proud to say, we made it! We accomplished this by transcending our limits, with the invaluable support and company from our family, friends, professors, and university staff. So, let's give the loudest applause to ourselves, as well as to those who have shed light on our path in the past four years!

In 2019, in one of my first English classes, Dr. Connie asked us a question - why do we choose to attend such a unique university? The word 'unique' struck me. I started to think about what makes GT unique and how it will metamorphose us. And today, I was finally able to give my answer. GT is unique because I found my thinking was reshaped and horizon broadened by meeting professors with diverse backgrounds after four years' study here. And my professional skills were cultivated and honed by getting access to cutting-edge apparatus in the laboratory and numerous research practices provided by the university.

It's unique also because of the spirit of 'Chutzpah' which lies underneath the education notion in GT. It was planted and nurtured in every GTer’s mind since the very beginning, distinguishing us from our peers. ‘Chutzpah’, originating from Hebrew with the meaning 'extreme confidence'. In almost every class, professors would encourage us to speak out our opinions freely and to defend them when confronted.  I recalled my first attendance in the Linear Algebra class as a freshman when I was too shy to raise my questions because I didn’t want to sound like an idiot. Sounds familiar, right? I believe I am not the only one who had this feeling when we just got here. Fortunately, Prof. Paulo Tirao noticed my struggle and told me that everyone’s thinking is worthless and precious. Under his encouragement and insistence, I started to put up my question and learned what I did not understand the most. With the 'Chutzpah' sprouting in my mind, I obtained the courage to knock on the professor’s office and propose a research topic that was also a frontier to him. My initiative was accepted and it guided me to the most intriguing research area consequently. Moreover, during my admission interview with Stanford University, I held an opposite opinion to the interviewee about the potential location to undergo treatment in water management. Again, the ‘Chutzpah’ spirit drove me to confidently defend myself. The result is, I received an offer from my dream university. Many practices of 'Chutzpah' can be seen in the campus all the time. I think the 'Chutzpah' spirit is the best gift I received from GT, may as well to you my fellow students. It has brought me courage, confidence and opportunities. And if it hasn’t done the same to you, it will as long as you keep practicing it.

Graduation is a celebration of lasts, preparing for a new set of firsts. I believe that even though we are graduating today, the spirit of 'Chutzpah' will always remind us as a GTer and guide us through more obstacles and challenges. What we need to do is to keep confident and try to defend our stand! Hold tight to everything this university and life and the world have taught us and go forth. Graduation is not the end, it's a launching pad. Now let's take flight! Thank you and congratulations again!