SC State University awards 129 degrees at Fall Commencement

 

Like superpowers: An SC State graduate’s assessment of completing his degree

ORANGEBURG, S.C. – When Ermon Ishmal left South Carolina State University’s Fall Commencement Ceremony on Thursday with his business economics degree in hand, he made sure to have his photo taken with the professor who guided him the most, Dr. Paul Rienstra-Munnicha.

“Dr. Paul was new being an adviser so we kind of learned our way together,” Ishmal said. “He was really the teacher who stuck out and made sure we had the lessons and understood. Even if we had to redo and redo, he made sure we understood what we were doing.

“He showed us love. He gave excellent advice. He’s an amazing teacher. He’s more than a teacher. He’s almost like a father to me. I appreciate Dr. Paul for everything he does and everything he stands for,” Ishmal said.

The North Augusta, South Carolina, resident was awestruck by the significance of graduation day, especially by all the family and friends who joined the crowd at Smith-Hammond-Middleton Memorial Center to see him cross the stage.

“It's almost surreal. I feel like I’m in dream. I can’t believe it,” Ishmal said. “It seems just like yesterday it was my first day here. Just to be able to walk through these doors with my degree, it’s almost like I have superpowers.

“It’s amazing to be out here – just amazing,” he said.

As a third-generation SC State graduate, Ishmal has numerous Bulldogs in his family, and he found an extended family in the SC State student body.

“It was all love. We always came together. We prayed for each other. We looked out for each other,” he said. “It’s an amazing university. I recommend that everyone come here.”

That sentiment was just as clear from the ceremony’s commencement address delivered by Chicago Bears executive Ted Crews, who completed his SC State degree 25 years and one day before Thursday’s ceremony.
 
Crews thanked the many people who supported him along his journey through SC State and his career path as a communications professional in the NFL.

It was a route that began when then-SC State Sports Information Director Bill Hamilton saw Crews' potential and recommended him for an internship with the Carolina Panthers.

“If that young man sitting in that seat on Dec. 11, 1999, had been told he would work for five NFL teams, go to five Super Bowls and win three (with the Kansas City Chiefs), he would have laughed at you,” Crews said. “Class of 2024, we all have a story to tell. We all have people like I do who got us to this moment.

“We come from different backgrounds, different paths, and now it’s your time,” Crews said. “Today, you’re launched to blaze a trail for your future. You’re the best of the best, and don’t let anybody tell you that you can’t go from South Carolina State to anywhere.”

Charleston, South Carolina, resident Jadah Darby hopes her “anywhere” will be medical school leading to a career as a pediatrician.

“I love kids, I love medicine, and I want to do better for the community in terms of doctors,” she said. “I don’t know exactly where I want to land at the moment. I think just wherever God takes me, I am just going to be happy.”
Having entered SC State in the Fall 2019 Semester, she was among those whose time on campus was cut short the following spring when the COVID-19 pandemic forced the university into emergency remote instruction.

She persevered, though, and left SC State on Thursday with a bachelor’s degree in biology and a minor in chemistry.

Jadah Darby earned a bachelor's degree in biology with a minor in chemistry.

“It feels amazing. I am just thankful. I know I am supposed to be bigger in life,” Darby said. “My mom, my family – I have wonderful support. All my family were with me through everything.”

Darby and Ishman were among 129 degree recipients who marked the major milestone in their lives on Thursday. The university conferred 83 undergraduate degrees and 46 advanced degrees, including 11 Doctor of Educational Leadership degrees.

The university also awarded Crews an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters at Thursday’s ceremony.

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