Kyle Knight and Matt Zafirovski

When seniors Kyle Knight and Matt Zafirovski step up to the podium Sunday, they know that speaking together at graduation will be one of the most unique ways to culminate four years of friendship at Duke. It will mark the first time in the University's history that two students have been chosen to deliver the undergraduate commencement address simultaneously. "Our powers combined are far greater then that of a single human," Zafirovski said. "It's kind of like captain planet," added Knight. Although they did not provide details about their speech, the duo said they planned to inject humor into it. "We are innovators," Knight said. "We are going to trademark this.... Think if Martin Luther King and Abe Lincoln and had spoken together. It would have changed history. Because they were born so far apart, it would have been like a time warp. And a damn good speech." Knight, a cultural anthropology major and philosophy minor from Winthrop, M.E., and a member of Inside Joke, plans to spend the summer photographing nomads in culturally-Tibetan regions in China as part of a Visual Studies Initiative. But given the recent Tibetan-Chinese conflicts, Knight said he realizes he may not be able to complete his study, in which case he would venture to Nepal, India, where he previously spent time researching social and cultural impacts on people with disabilities. Next fall, Knight plans to work for Broadway Abroad, where he will be a project manager for Broadway tours in India. Lake Forest, Ill., native Zafirovski, a public policy major with a markets and management studies certificate, will start work in August for McKinsey and Company. But before they part ways to pursue different professional paths, the seniors said giving the address together would give testament to their four-year friendship, which has involved numerous trips to Cosmic Cantina and Chipotle, and, most recently, working together on the senior gift campaign. "We love [Duke]," said Knight. "We thought this was, selfishly, a very cool way to say goodbye." The two seniors, who were randomly assigned freshman roommates, had their first experience collaborating early in their Duke education. One of their friends in the Pitchforks asked them to entertain a large crowd when there was a "small emergency" before a show in Page Auditorium, they said. Their impromptu skit was a well-received, so they decided to try their luck again by submitting a graduation speech. The student graduation speaker is chosen by a group of students, alumni, staff and faculty. Finalists are invited to perform their speeches in person. "The committee all really enjoyed their speech, their delivery, their sense of humor and their content," said Sterly Wilder, executive director of alumni affairs and a member of the student speaker selection committee. "It was an all-in-one package."