On Saturday and Sunday, May 16 and 17, Vermont Tech celebrated the college’s 149thannual commencement ceremony. The Ceremony returned to Vermont Tech’s Randolph Center campus location for the first time in more than five years. Vermont Tech graduates students in both bachelor’s and associate’s degree programs.
“Leave here today with the confidence that graduates from this college will lead the way, because you know how to get things done,” said Vermont Tech President Dan Smith to the graduating class. “That is the exception in this day and age.”
NASA Flight Director Zebulon Scoville, a native of Middlesex, Vermont, and graduate of Union 32 High School in East Montpelier, returned to Vermont to inspire and encourage Vermont Tech’s graduates with this year’s commencement speech.
“As a species we are engrained with a fear of failure,” said Scoville. “The trick is to fail smartly, and early. By this I mean you need to set up your failures so you can learn from them. Fail early when the stakes are lower. Learn from your mistakes, and do it all over again. Fail early, fail often. Make it break, then make it better. ” Scoville is currently based at the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center and is the Lead Flight Director on Expedition 52. He also leads the International Space Station Flight Control team and is responsible for pre-flight mission development and real-time mission execution.
At three different ceremonies through the weekend, the college honored more than 460 graduates. Of those graduating, 399 (86%) were Vermonters. The Nursing Department, which delivers its program in multiple locations around the state, featured the largest number of graduates. One hundred fourty-four (144) nursing students received degrees.
About Vermont Tech– Vermont Tech is a leading public college with a mission of applied education. One of the five Vermont State Colleges, Vermont Tech serves students from throughout Vermont, New England, and beyond at its two residential campuses in Williston and Randolph Center, regional campuses in Brattleboro and Bennington, and at five nursing campuses located throughout the state. Vermont Tech takes an optimistic, rooted and personal approach to education to support students in gaining the confidence and practical skills necessary to not only see their potential, but to experience it. Our academic programs encompass a wide range of engineering technology, agricultural, health, and business fields that are vital to producing the knowledgeable workers needed most by employers in the state and in the region.www.vtc.edu.