Worcester Polytechnic Institute celebrated its largest graduating class in years this week as speakers ranging from a Grammy-winning musician and tech entrepreneur to energy industry executives urged students to embrace creativity, curiosity and leadership in a rapidly changing world.
During WPI’s 157th commencement ceremonies at the DCU Center, the university awarded nearly 1,200 bachelor’s degrees, more than 600 master’s degrees and over 60 doctoral degrees across fields including engineering, science, technology, business and the humanities.
The ceremonies, held Thursday and Friday, combined the traditional pageantry of commencement with repeated reminders that graduates are entering a world increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence, technological disruption and evolving global challenges.
Undergraduate commencement speaker will.i.am — the multiplatinum recording artist, entrepreneur and founder of the i.am Angel Foundation — urged graduates to think beyond existing systems and industries as they enter the workforce.
“How intentional are you going to be with this technology as you unearth tomorrow’s industries?” will.i.am said in the announcement released by WPI. “Pick a problem, solve it. That solution is an industry.”
“This is the time for imagination,” he added. “AI is not imagining. It’s regurgitation of the human imagination. Turn that off.”
The artist, whose work has increasingly focused on technology and STEAM education initiatives, also received an honorary doctoral degree during Friday’s undergraduate ceremony alongside entrepreneur and investor Paul Covec ’64.
WPI President Grace Wang told graduates their education prepared them not only for existing careers, but for industries and challenges that do not yet exist.
“We stand at the dawn of a new technological age,” Wang said in the announcement. “There’s a good chance you will do jobs that are yet to be invented. You will work in companies that are yet to be established. You will address issues that are yet to be defined.”
“This means everything can be questioned, and everything can be new,” Wang said.
Graduate commencement exercises Thursday featured remarks from Lisa Barton ’87, president and CEO of Alliant Energy, who returned to campus as a featured speaker more than three decades after graduating from WPI with a degree in electrical engineering.
“In a world increasingly shaped by technological advancements, the differentiator will not be access to information. It will be the ability to think,” Barton said in the announcement. “You weren’t taught what to think, you were taught how to think, and never before has that distinction been more important.”
Barton and longtime WPI trustee and business leader Philip “Flip” Morgan also received honorary doctoral degrees during the graduate ceremony.
Student speakers at both commencements reflected on personal growth and uncertainty during their time at WPI. Undergraduate speaker Mena Youssif, who earned a degree in civil engineering, spoke about unexpected change and resilience in a speech titled “We Didn’t See It Coming.” Graduate speaker Anjali Nair, who received a master’s degree in information technology, spoke about “finding confidence in uncertainty, purpose in reinvention, and growth in taking chances,” according to the announcement.
The ceremonies also highlighted WPI’s continued emphasis on blending technical education with broader social and ethical responsibility — themes university leaders repeatedly connected to the growing influence of artificial intelligence and emerging technologies.
Honorary degrees were also awarded prior to commencement to philanthropists Patricia Messenger and Harold L. Jurist ’61.
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