If you are looking for some words of wisdom to give to anyone who is finishing your educational programs, NPR has just assembled a database called The Best Commencement Speeches, Ever. It has over 300 graduation speeches, dating back to 1774, and searchable by name of speaker, school where the speech took place, or year of address.
It’s hard to come up with some original words in these circumstance, so why not borrow some from the best, like the Dalai Lama (Tulane, 2013), J.K. Rowling (Harvard, 2008), or one of my personal favorites, Steve Jobs (Stanford, 2005)? In our literature classes at Heroic U, we also analyze speeches, so I’m sure the site contains plenty of excellent examples to examine to see how the master speakers create the magic that they do.
Check out the database at: http://apps.npr.org/commencement/.