FVCC alumna tells grads to confront fear, seek path to happiness
Nouf Nichole Al-Rashoodi gets a high-five from the father of her roommate as she proceeds toward the tent where Flathead Valley Community College held its spring commencement ceremony Friday evening, May 18. (Brenda Ahearn/Daily Inter Lake)
More than 300 students line up for the processional at the start of the Flathead Valley Community College spring commencement ceremony.
President of Flathead Valley Community College Dr. Jane Karas in the processional at the start of the Flathead Valley Community College 50th Commencement Ceremony is about to begin on Friday evening, May 18.(Brenda Ahearn/Daily Inter Lake)
The Montana Highlanders Bagpipe Association leads theprocessional at the start of the Flathead Valley Community College 50th Commencement Ceremony is about to begin on Friday evening, May 18.(Brenda Ahearn/Daily Inter Lake)
The Montana Highlanders Bagpipe Association leads theprocessional at the start of the Flathead Valley Community College 50th Commencement Ceremony is about to begin on Friday evening, May 18.(Brenda Ahearn/Daily Inter Lake)
President of Flathead Valley Community College Dr. Jane Karas, members of the board and the college faculty in the processional at the start of the Flathead Valley Community College 50th Commencement Ceremony is about to begin on Friday evening, May 18.(Brenda Ahearn/Daily Inter Lake)
Perfect weather for the 50th Commencement Ceremony at Flathead Valley Community College on Friday, May 18, in Kalispell.(Brenda Ahearn/Daily Inter Lake)
Perfect weather for the 50th Commencement Ceremony at Flathead Valley Community College on Friday, May 18, in Kalispell.(Brenda Ahearn/Daily Inter Lake)
Flathead Valley Community College students gather for a photo as they wait for the start of the 50th Commencement Ceremony at Flathead Valley Community College on Friday, May 18, in Kalispell.(Brenda Ahearn/Daily Inter Lake)
Perfect weather for the 50th Commencement Ceremony at Flathead Valley Community College on Friday, May 18, in Kalispell.(Brenda Ahearn/Daily Inter Lake)
Flathead Valley Community College President Dr. Jane Karas opens the 50th Commencement Ceremony at Flathead Valley Community College on Friday, May 18, in Kalispell. In the foreground are the 368 degrees and certificates to be award later that evening.(Brenda Ahearn/Daily Inter Lake)
The 50th graduating class of Flathead Valley Community College departed Friday evening with a message of courage and self care from a woman who survived multiple high-altitude mountain climbs and Harvard final exams.
Before commencement speaker Sarah Rugheimer took the stage, FVCC President Jane Karas took a moment to congratulate the 368 graduates receiving their degrees and/or certificates, and their families crowded into a tent on the Kalispell campus lawn.
“You all have worked hard, and many of you have attended FVCC while juggling your family and work responsibilities,” Karas said. “Tonight, you, your family and your friends should be proud of your accomplishments.”
An FVCC alumna, Harvard graduate and astrophysicist, Rugheimer nailed home two points for the graduates.
“Don’t turn back from fear alone,” Rugheimer said, speaking of the time she attempted a high-altitude climb on Aconcagua, a trek of nearly 23,000 feet.
Her refusal to turn back in the face of obstacles and uncertainty led her to reach the first summit of many — a feat mirrored by 27-year-old Chance Stupack as he crossed the stage to receive his associate of science degree.
The Kalispell resident spent years deciding and redirecting his steps in his pursuit of education, and as of Friday evening, he reached the end of the first half of the home stretch.
“I really liked it here,” Stupack said. “But it’s exciting and it’s good to be moving on.”
Going forward, Stupack said he plans pursue a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a focus in accounting through the University of Montana.
Speaking on her experience with impostor syndrome during her time earning her doctorate at Harvard University, Rugheimer imparted a secondary piece of advice to the graduates.
Impostor syndrome, she said, caused her to live in constant fear of being exposed as an impostor who was simply playing the part of the brilliant scholar.
Advice from her mentor, she said, led her to understand that the most important thing you can do for yourself in times of self-doubt and stress is to “take care of the body first.”
Happiness, Rugheimer said, is not the result of success but rather the cause of success, and each person has direct control over his or her own path to happiness.
Sonesta Billow, 23, of Columbia Falls, said she struggled to decide on a focus of study when she first started at FVCC, but eventually discovered a passion for coding through a class she said she took by accident.
When a spot in a mission’s program beckoned her, Billow said she took a year off from school to go to Guatemala and Cambodia before returning with a determination that led her to accomplishing two associate degrees at once.
On Friday, she received an associate in graphic design and web design, her smile never leaving her face.
“It feels so good. It really does,” Billow said. “It’s really nice to have two associates under my belt and have that experience.”
Billow said she is excited to go out and see what the world has to offer, planning to try her hand at freelance graphic design and other possibilities before she considers continuing her education.
“Honestly it just comes down to FVCC is a great school for people who don’t know what they want to do to try different things and not have to worry about spending thousands of dollars.”
Rugheimer said that FVCC set her up for the successes and opportunities that led her to Harvard and an upcoming fellowship at the University of Oxford in England.
“There will be moments in your lives when the wind is knocked out of you. All of your dreams and plans crumble through your fingers,” Rugheimer told the graduates.
During those moments, she said, “do the things that make you happy and healthy.”
She congratulated FVCC’s graduating class, reminding them that all opportunities for the future are open to them.
“In short, whether or not success has come easily to you up to this point in your lives, we all know there will be struggles ahead,” Rugheimer said. “I ask you, please don’t say no to yourself.”
Reporter Mary Cloud Taylor can be reached at 758-4459 or mtaylor@dailyinterlake.com.