By SARA FURLONG

s.furlong@bradfordera.com

Commencement speaker for the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford’s Class of 2025, Dr. Yvon Woappi, ’11, inspired and encouraged 183 graduates and their friends and loved ones, faculty and staff during exercises held Sunday in KOA Arena.

‘I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to go back to college,’ laughed Pitt-Bradford President Rick Esch as Woappi closed his speech. ‘I feel truly inspired and really would like to thank Dr.

Woappi for that great and inspirational message delivered to all of our students.’

Woappi, who researches wound healing and regeneration at his lab at Columbia University, was born in Cameroon and immigrated to the U.S. during middle school.

Fie earned his doctorate in biomedical sciences from the University of South Carolina School of Medicine. He told the graduates, ‘It’s really an extraordinary moment for me to be here; it’s an incredible honor to stand here before you today. It truly means the world to be back on this campus.’

Woappi explained it had been 14 years since he was ‘sitting exactly where you are now — the same cap, the same gown, the same overwhelming swirl of emotions.’

He described the swirl as a mixture of excitement, joy and bittersweetness, even fear and intimidation.

‘I was asking myself, ‘Was I ready for the world? Do I have what it takes? Was I smart enough?” he admitted, adding the uncertainty was daunting.

‘The truth is, I’ve come to learn every generation faces its own version of disruptions, talks of economic recessions, endemics, wars — each generation faces a challenge they don’t often choose or control. But each generation gets to choose how it faces the challenges ahead.

‘And this, in many ways, is why universities, education was invented,’ Woappi reasoned. ‘We educate engineers because the bridges of yesterday may not be enough to carry the traffic of tomorrow.

‘Political scientists are trained because conflicts are persistent and international relations are delicate. Education … is really a tool for survival to face the unknown,’ he continued. ‘If you are receiving a degree today, sitting here before me, you are ready.’

Woappi left the graduates with a few lessons, first to lean on their University of Pittsburgh Pitt-Bradford… page A-10

Dr. Yvon Woappi, ’11, delivers the commencement address to 183 graduates of the Class of 2025 at the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford on Sunday.

Era photo by Wade Aiken degrees. “As a Pitt Panther, you now have access to a broad professional network,” he noted.

“A Pitt degree is more than a credential, it’s also a passport into a global community of thinkers, doers, exceptional achievers. The Pitt alumni network is full of people who want to help you thrive.

“So reach out, make connections, be bold, be entrepreneurial. The future is yours. It is really up to you to seize it.”

He then advised them to take their dreams and ideas seriously and to recognize that life after graduation is a marathon.

“You know that random idea you have scribbled in your notebook, that no one knows about? That’s a good idea,” Woappi declared.

“Hold on to it, test it.

Share it, ultimately, and pursue it.”

He continued, “Some of you may have an impressive next plan lined up after graduation, and that’s okay.

Your journey is a marathon, my friends, it is not a sprint. Focus on your path and be true to your journey.”

Earlier in the ceremony the Pitt-Bradford Alumni Association honored Woappi with the Alumni Award of Distinction, presented for outstanding professional achievement or exemplary service to the community.

“Yvon embodies the incredible potential of a Pitt-Bradford education,” Esch said.

A recipient of the MIT Rising Star Award, Woappi is director of the Synthetic Regeneration and Systems Physiology Laboratory, which he founded in 2022, and an assistant professor of dermatology in the Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia.

Also honored during commencement exercises was Susan H.

Silvestri, who attended Pitt-Bradford in the early 1970s. An active and loyal supporter of her alma mater, Silvestri received the university’s highest honor — the Presidential Medal of Distinction.

“Sue has been instrumental in shaping and strengthening our campus community,” Esch said.

“Through her exemplary volunteer service, financial support and invaluable expertise, she has demonstrated an unwavering dedication to Pitt-Bradford’s growth and success over many years.” He said her contributions are a “shining example of the impact that engaged and passionate alumni can have on their alma maters.”

Silvestri is a longstanding member of the Advisory Board’s Executive Committee and is chair of the Advisory Board’s Athletics Council. She was also a founding member of the Pitt-Bradford Alumni Association, which she has served in many capacities.

Dr. Jeffrey Johnson, vice president and dean of academic affairs, announced each of 183 students who had fulfilled the requirements for each of their respective degrees.

“I extend to you, Class of 2025, our congratulations on the completion of your University of Pittsburgh degree. Your success is our success, and we are very, very proud of you,” Johnson said.

“While becoming broadly educated within the liberal arts college tradition, keep in mind that the mark of an educated person is to recognize that many of the problems faced by humankind today will not be solved solely with specialized knowledge.

The general education competencies you have mastered will complement your specialized knowledge, enabling you to communicate effectively with others, analyze issues and all their complexities and find solutions for the benefit of all.”

Woappi said, “Today is more than the closing of a chapter, it is the beginning of something extraordinary. You are stepping into a world that needs you. It needs your energy, your courage, your ideas, your compassion — it needs your innovation, your intellect.

We are counting on you to reimagine what’s possible. To go out there, be bold, be abundantly kind, build bridges, heal wounds.”