NIC, community celebrate class of '22
Cyrus Vore, president of the Associated Students of North Idaho College, speaks to the crowd during the class of 2022 commencement ceremony on Friday at NIC’s main campus in Coeur d’Alene.
The North Idaho College community celebrated the resilient class of 2022 – a cohort that survived what Associated Students of NIC President Cyrus Vore called “a whirlwind of a year, both awesome and crazy and every other adjective you can think to describe it” – at a commencement ceremony on Friday on NIC’s main campus in Coeur d’Alene.
“You guys had the world go against you and you conquered it,” Vore said during the ceremony. “We literally had the world shut down and say, ‘Hey, no, no, no. You’re not going to class. Don’t go to college. Just stay home.’ We fought through it, and we’re here today for you.”
The NIC community celebrated 826 graduates, including approximately 350 graduates who participated in the commencement ceremony. NIC Interim President Michael Sebaaly said the graduates ranged in age from 17 years old to 68 years old.
“What an honor it is for me to be with you on this very special day,” Sebaaly said. “… Thank you for your commitment to your education, to yourselves and to this wonderful place - this gathering place we call North Idaho College.”
Dr. Lita Burns, who worked at NIC for more than 20 years in several leadership roles and retired in January, gave the commencement address. She commended the graduates on their transformational growth and the individual and collective accomplishments they achieved, as well as reminding them of the impact of community.
“Today we recognize what you have accomplished and what you have become,” Burns said. “With your family and friends who have known you for many years, this college holds great hope for the future of our community, our country and even the world knowing that our future is in your hands. We believe you have the knowledge and the confidence to lead us forward. Our society needs leaders who understand that our communities will thrive the best when people work together to achieve common goals.
“If you want to succeed in your next adventure – be it your career, further education, community leadership or being an amazing parent or partner – value the people around you as much if not more than you value yourself,” Burns said.
Vore also reminisced fondly on student experiences at NIC, including dorm prom, a student cruise on Lake Coeur d’Alene and procrastinating until the night before commencement to submit a final assignment.
“It’s the good things; it’s also the bad things, because when you’re here for as many years as we are – two, four, eight, whatever that number is – bad things happen and good things happen,” Vore said. “You have a story to tell, and that’s the awesome part of all this. Even with the bads, even with the goods, we are all still here together. It’s the friends you’ve made and the family you’ve made out of those friends.”
As members of “one of the most unique classes that has ever graduated from college literally ever,” Vore said NIC’s graduates have developed a will power and want to succeed that will drive them forward in any endeavor.
“I’m extremely proud of all of you because you made it here, because you didn’t give up,” Vore said. “This college is you, each and every one of you; this college is us. We are North Idaho College. We are the future. We are what is going forward in this crazy, crazy world, and I see a bright future ahead of all of you."
For more information, contact NIC Communications Coordinator Megan Snodgrass at (208) 665-2759 or megan.snodgrass@nic.edu.
North Idaho College graduate Hailey Thaxton listens during the class of 2022 commencement ceremony on Friday at NIC’s main campus in Coeur d’Alene.
Story by Megan Snodgrass mpsnodgrass@nic.edu
Photos by Elli Oba etoba@nic.edu
Posted: Monday, May 16, 2022
