Contact: Crystal Drake, Office of Strategic Communications
The first graduating class of Tuskegee’s Renaissance Era leaves Tuskegee University ready to make meaningful contributions around the world—grounded in the institution’s enduring legacy of academic excellence, global impact and servant-leadership.
In preparation for the Undergraduate Commencement ceremony on May 9, Tuskegee University celebrated graduates in a series of pre-commencement ceremonies recognizing key academic and professional milestones across multiple disciplines including the School of Education, School of Nursing and Allied Health, College of Engineering, and the ROTC Joint Commissioning Ceremony.
At each event, President and CEO Dr. Mark A. Brown encouraged graduates to embrace the leadership, purpose and service ahead of them, and celebrated the important role of parents – and all versions of the village that nurtured them – as the vital support system on each student’s journey to this life-changing milestone.
Through the day, Dr. Brown also drew a bold line under the fact that Tuskegee has made good on the promise it made when these students first arrived, and to its legacy of more than 145 years – to equip students with career-ready skillsets that make them sought-after young professionals well prepared to do work that will secure their economic mobility and make the world a better place.
“You brought us your treasure,” he said “and we return them to you, ready to go out into the world and do the job – not in a year from now, on day-one.”
A Call to Purpose and Lifelong Learning
The School of Education hosted its Teacher Induction Ceremony, recognizing eight graduates preparing to enter the teaching profession. The ceremony also marked a milestone as the first graduating class under the new Dean Dr. Brooke Burks ’00.
Dean Burks led the graduates in the Responsibility of the Profession Oath vowing their commitment to practice the profession according the highest ethical standards, acknowledge the supreme importance of the pursuit of truth, and support the protection of freedom to learn and to teach in pursuit of equal educational opportunity for all.
The event was also a full-circle moment for Dean Burks and the keynote speaker, Dr. Chippewa Thomas ’98, a former Miss Tuskegee.
Dr. Burks shared that she first encountered Dr. Thomas as a teen during a high school open house visit to Tuskegee. She was so inspired by Thomas that she told her father on the spot, she’d made her decision.
In her remarks, Dr. Thomas congratulated the graduates on joining what she called a noble profession, reminding them of the critical importance of educators: “None of us would have a profession without a teacher.”
Now serving as Director of the Office of Faculty Engagement and the Encyclopedia of Alabama, as well as a full professor of Counselor Education (Clinical Mental Health) programs in the Department of Special Education, Rehabilitation, Counseling/School Psychology in the College of Education at Auburn University, Dr. Thomas encouraged the graduates to be lifelong learners and also to prioritize their well-being.
“Graduate again and again, gets your masters, your doctorate. Commit to lifelong learning but also celebrate each day,” she said.
Delivering the Keys to Excellence in Care
Dr. Cordelia C. Nnedu, dean of the School of Nursing and Allied Health, led the pinning ceremony with students formally reciting the Nightingale Pledge and Allied Health Pledge—symbolizing their commitment to ethical and compassionate care.
Most of the 72 graduates have already begun full-time roles, have job offers or are on their way to graduate school.
Honorees in the allied health program, which includes training in medical assistant, laboratory technician and public roles, received a pin signifying their entry into the healthcare profession. Each nursing student was helped into their crisply pressed nurses white coat for this first time.
“The first white coat I ever saw was the one my mother wore as a nurse,” said Dr. Brown, who smiled as he remembered how sternly his mother insisted with the dry cleaner to make the creases perfect.
He noted it was the same insistence on the highest of standards Tuskegee has been training nurses with for more than 100 years. “I understand the precision and excellence this profession requires,” said Dr. Brown “and also that at Tuskegee University, we specialize in seeing the humanity in others.”
Keynote speaker Dr. Victoria Foster, a Tuskegee alumna and Director of Undergraduate Nursing Programs at Clayton State University, highlighted the ever-evolving nature of healthcare.
With more than two decades of teaching experience, impactful research in HIV prevention, and leadership at the state level—including being the first African American president of the Georgia Association for Nursing Education— Dr. Foster also challenged graduates to never stop learning, explaining that “knowledge is not static – it is a key you must continue to polish.”
Her charge was clear: “Whatever you do, make Mother Tuskegee proud.”
Embracing Responsibility and Opportunity in Engineering
At the Order of the Engineer ceremony, 58 engineering graduates were recognized and formally inducted into the profession, representing disciplines including chemical, electrical, mechanical, and aerospace engineering.
Dr. Brown highlighted the global demand for engineers, noting a projected 40% workforce deficit in engineering-related fields—underscoring the significance of the graduates’ achievements.
The ceremony also included a reflection on the history and meaning of the Order of the Engineer, emphasizing ethical responsibility and public service. Graduates received the symbolic engineer’s ring, a stainless steel ring worn on the fifth finger of the dominant hand as a daily reminder of their professional obligations.
Graduates also signed an oath known as the Obligation of an Engineer, a pledge to uphold the standards and dignity of the engineering profession and to serve humanity by making the best use of Earth’s precious resources.
Keynote speaker Tamara Y. Washington ’94 reminded graduates that the ring’s placement on the pinky finger is an intentional and powerful symbol.
“The ring is not decorative. It is meant to drag across every surface you write on, as a reminder of who you said you were going to be.”
Washington, who has led work at Deloitte, Cisco Systems and the Mitre Corporation, currently serves as a patent examiner at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, specializing in LED synchronization for virtual and augmented reality devices.
She challenged graduates to uphold the legacy of Tuskegee University’s long history as one of the top producers of Black engineers in the nation.
“You are not trained to be an engineer—you are an engineer,” she said, reinforcing the importance of this self-actualization especially when the challenges of being among a minority in work spaces become their reality.
“You are a part of pipeline that has been feeding talent and integrity to industries, agencies and communities for generations. Now it’s your turn – go build something, go discover something, give your utmost every single time. Go make us proud!
Preparing Leaders for Service When Our Nation is at War
The 2026 ROTC Joint Commissioning Ceremony honored 20 cadets who were commissioned into the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps. Tuskegee University is the only HBCU in the country offering ROTC programs for all branches of the armed forces.
Dr. Brown, who retired from a 32-year career in the U.S. Air Force as a Major General, was commissioned into the Air Force from the very same Tuskegee ROTC program in 1986. He addressed the honorees from a deeply personal place and a sober understanding of the tremendous sacrifice they have volunteered to make for their country.
“Less than 1% of the country’s population will do what you’re going to do,” said Dr. Brown.
Quoting Thomas Paine’s American Crisis I written in December 1776, Dr. Brown recounted the idea of “the summer soldier and the sunshine patriot,” written as the morale among those embroiled in the Revolutionary War was strained to its limits and rapidly waning.
“Paine was calling into question those who were questioning why someone would volunteer to do this and his point was that these soldiers where doing it for the very person who would ask the question: I am doing it for you – because you love democracy, and even if you aren’t willing to do it, I am.”
As members of the audience wept, Dr. Brown reminded them of the outcome.
“You remember how that war turned out, right?” reminding the audience that the Continental Army prevailed and the United States of America was born.
Dr. Brown went on to encourage the new officers to lean on their Tuskegee heritage for strength.
“Tuskegee has been breaking barriers for a mighty long time. Before it was legal to do so, before our country loved us, we loved our country enough to put on the uniform and fight for her. We know what it means to pay the price for your country. You take that with you,” said Dr. Brown.
Keynote speaker U.S. Air Force Colonel Mikita R. Brown ’04, an accomplished Air Force Reserve Command leader, delivered a powerful message on resilience and adaptability.
Sharing her personal story of not initially receiving her desired assignment as a young lieutenant fresh from Tuskegee, she described how that unexpected detour led to a mission that helped rescue 16 American hostages.
“Sixteen Americans reunited with their loved ones—and one lieutenant learned to live with her detours,” she said.
She made it clear, the road ahead will be difficult - long days, sleepless nights, many days away from family and friends.
“Your leaders must now shape you, strengthen you, and sharpen you into lethal, steel eyed stone cold fighters,” she said. “Make no mistake, we are a country at war and these are the moments that lie ahead for you.”
During the ceremony, Second Lieutenant Bryan Black, a Political Science major from Stockbridge, Georgia, was recognized with an extraordinary honor – The Air Force ROTC Distinguished Graduate Award.
This designation is the highest honor a cadet can receive upon commissioning as an officer in the U.S. Air Force. It is awarded to the top 10% of ROTC graduates nationwide each year, recognizing exceptional academic achievement, leadership, and character.
“The moment my name was called it was like a dream had been fulfilled,” said Black. “I did not expect to receive it as my peers in my opinion are the best competition I can ask for. They all motivate me to work harder and be a better man.”
He added that his decision to attend Tuskegee was firmly rooted in the Tuskegee Airmen legacy (and maybe a little Star Wars, too – years ago he watched “The Phantom Menace” with his father, Deron Black, and thought Anakin Skywalker’s fighter pilot skills were pretty cool.)
“I chose Tuskegee because I knew I wanted to become a pilot. The deep Tuskegee Airmen history is so important and I am honored and dedicated to continue that legacy.”
© 2026 Tuskegee University
