In her address to the 304 graduates gathered at Yoder Arena for EMU’s 108th annual Commencement on Sunday afternoon, Dr. Angela J. Lederach quoted the late Kenyan peacebuilder Dekha Ibrahim Abdi, a former student and instructor in EMU’s Summer Peacebuilding Institute.
“Peace is like an egg,” Lederach said. “It is delicate and fragile, but in the right conditions, it gives life.”
Lederach is an assistant professor of peace and justice studies at Chapman University. She has spent more than a decade working with grassroots peacebuilders in Colombia to transform violent conflict, expand possibilities for environmental justice, and cultivate more just and livable communities. She is the author of Feel the Grass Grow: Ecologies of Slow Peace in Colombia and co-author of When Blood and Bones Cry Out: Journeys Through the Soundscape of Healing and Reconciliation.
Commencement weekend served as a homecoming for Lederach, whose father, John Paul, co-founded EMU’s internationally recognized Center for Justice and Peacebuilding and served as its first director. Her presence at the ceremony coincided with the center’s 30th anniversary celebration.
Graduates of the Class of 2026 attend EMU’s 108th annual Commencement on Sunday in Yoder Arena.
Dr. Angela J. Lederach (left) recalled attending EMU commencements as a child and fully immersing herself in the campus fountain’s “crystal clear waters” while dressed in her Sunday best. “If you want to know the real reason why you are inside today instead of outside, you know where to direct the blame,” she joked with graduates. Kylik Bradshaw (right), a liberal arts graduate, beams during the big day.
Lederach spoke about how she has learned from peacebuilders and CJP alumni around the world to listen for the sounds of justice. Alumni such as Emmanuel Bombande MA ’02 and Leymah Gbowee MA ’07, who worked to bring peace to West Africa and Liberia, taught her to speak the language of justice, while Larissa Zehr MA ’11 in Colombia showed her how to walk alongside people pursuing peace in the wake of dehumanizing violence.
“To speak the language of justice requires courage,” she said. “Not the loud bravado that conceals cowardice and blares from the world stage today, but the quiet courage found in the register of everyday life, in the recognition of our shared humanity, in our willingness to stand up and say ‘never again,’ and in our ability and willingness to sacrifice for one another.”
That courage emanates from the lives of people like Michael “MJ” Sharp ’05, who was killed in 2017 while working as a United Nations expert on armed groups in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
“The language of justice is rooted in hope,” Lederach said. “…And I have to say, Class of 2026, the work of guarding hope is not easy.”
“And yet, as graduates of this institution have taught me over and over again,” she added, “it is precisely by slowing down enough to notice and attend to the lives and possibilities found close to the ground that dreams are protected and held and continue to grow, even amid violence.”
Cords of Distinction recipient Irais Barrera Pinzon, a political science and Spanish language & Hispanic studies graduate, smiles wide during Commencement.
Arelys Martinez Fabian (left) and Yenifer Dottin-Carter ’23 (right) present the graduate perspectives.
Undergraduates Dylan Hall and Arelys Martinez Fabian, along with MA in Counseling graduate Yenifer Dottin-Carter ’23, presented the graduate perspectives.
Hall reflected on the bittersweet emotions many were feeling as they left behind the dorms they once called home, the friends who joined them on their journeys, and the places on campus where memories were made. “But those memories are not leaving us,” he said. “They are a part of us. They are who we have become. As we turn this page in our lives, we will be taking a part of EMU into our occupations.”
Reading from Matthew 5:13-17, he called on his fellow graduates to act as the “salt of the earth” and “light of the world.” He said it’s easy to go through the motions, to blend in and lay low. “But I encourage you, whatever you do, to go the extra mile. Be a light in people’s lives. Stand out, work hard, and make an impact.”
Martinez Fabian recalled feeling a mix of excitement, fear, and uncertainty when applying to colleges four years ago. She said she didn’t know where life would take her, but she knew she was stepping into something bigger than she could ever imagine. Like many of her fellow graduates, she wasn’t just chasing her own dreams but also carrying the hopes of her family.
“This finish line isn’t just about my goals, it’s about my parents’ goals,” she said. “It’s about their journey, the miles they traveled from their homes, the long years of difficult work, and the challenge of learning a new language and navigating a new culture.”
Through it all, the late-night study sessions and Common Grounds conversations, she said, “we found our people.” She said she has been fortunate to meet friends who have become her lifeline throughout her time at EMU. “So I ask you this: How lucky are we that saying goodbye feels this hard? That kind of sadness only exists because of how meaningful those connections are.”
Dottin-Carter shared the story of her path to EMU, beginning with her family’s immigration from the Dominican Republic to Cambridge, Massachusetts, and her eventual move to Harrisonburg with her then-boyfriend, now husband, Isaiah MA ’22 (restorative justice). She invited graduates to imagine the countless stories lived among them, of triumph, hardship, laughter, and sorrow, that will be carried within them as a collective memory.
She encouraged graduates to find a space where their story is honored, their presence is valued, and their legacy is seen. “And if you cannot find it, build it,” she said. “Find your people, find your place, find space where you are loved, understood, and validated.”
Interim President Rev. Dr. Shannon W. Dycus presides over EMU’s 108th annual Commencement.
The ceremony recognized 304 graduates from 23 states, Puerto Rico, and 15 countries.
This marked Rev. Dr. Shannon W. Dycus’ first Commencement as interim president. In her opening remarks, she said many of the Class of 2026 graduates began their time at EMU during a season shaped by significant cultural and political change.
“You’ve navigated a world marked by tension, rapid shifts, and real questions about identity, belonging, and truth,” she said. “In the midst of it all, you stayed grounded in your learning. You stayed grounded with one another. You demonstrated resilience, discernment, and a willingness to engage complexity rather than turn away from it.”
The Rev. Gordon Meriwether, a member of the EMU Board of Trustees, led the opening invocation. The EMU Chamber Singers, led by Dr. Benjamin Bergey, performed a musical selection. Divisional deans Rev. Dr. Sarah Bixler and Dr. Michael Horst presented the graduates. Provost Dr. Tynisha Willingham commissioned the graduates. Retiring professors Dr. Doug Graber Neufeld and Deanna Durham delivered the Commencement blessing.
Watch a video recording of Commencement below!
Join the Discussion on “Commencement speaker Dr. Lederach says EMU and CJP alumni taught her to ‘speak the language of justice’”