Senior Andrew Kragie has been selected as the student speaker for this year’s commencement ceremony Sunday.
Kragie—who is double majoring in political science and public policy with a certificate in Latin American Studies—will focus his speech on the mindset that he thinks sets Duke students apart, a mixture of pragmatism and idealism he calls “Blue Devil double vision.”
“Duke students don’t just see the world as it is, they see the world as it could be,” he said.
A committee of faculty, students, administrators and staff selected Kragie as the student speaker from a pool of approximately 30 candidates who submitted first drafts of their speeches. During the first round of selection every year, committee members rank their favorite speeches without knowing who authored them, explained Sue Wasiolek, assistant vice president for student affairs and dean of students.
The committee then chooses between four and six finalists, who are asked to deliver their speeches in person.
“The first criteria is to look at content to see if someone has presented a speech that we feel is appropriate for Duke’s commencement, and the second part of it is to look at the delivery,” Wasiolek said.
Wasiolek said that competition this year was especially strong, noting that the committee’s choice was not an easy one.
“At the end of the day, the committee felt that the content of Andrew’s speech would have the broadest appeal,” she said. “His delivery was also excellent—he has such great energy and enthusiasm, and a really wonderful presence about him.”
Kragie’s speech will be one of the focal points of the commencement ceremony, which will feature an address from Paul Farmer, Trinity ‘82, and is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. May 10 at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park.
“I’m over the moon to have been given this opportunity,” Kragie said. “Duke is unique—it doesn’t just give us the knowledge to execute our plans, but it also allows us to develop moral visions to accompany those plans.”
A combination of learning and service has characterized several of the highlights of Kragie’s Duke experience—including his service trips to Costa Rica, independent DukeEngage project in Brazil and the house course he led examining the purpose of mission trips.
Kragie has also written for The Chronicle and Duke Political Review, worked with the American Grand Strategy program and enjoyed his experience as a member of the selective living group Cooper House.
He explained that, like many Duke students, he has struggled to “find the right balance of curricular and extracurricular activities”—noting that the line is not an easy one to find.
Kragie encouraged incoming freshmen to slow down enough to think about their experiences—whether by having a laid-back summer, taking a semester off or going away for the weekend.
“I’ve learned the importance of taking the time to reflect,” Kragie said. “It’s hard to process what is happening when you’re right in the middle of it.”
Next year, Kragie plans to pursue a career in journalism in Houston.
Update: This article was updated May 8 to reflect Wasiolek's comments and information about the selection process. Amrith Ramkumar contributed reporting.
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