Surprise speaker makes commencement address
Ukraine President Zelenskyy marks Johns Hopkins event
The Johns Hopkins University celebrated its commencement ceremony Thursday morning with a surprise speech by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy via livestream, the university said.
Zelenskyy, who has been president of Ukraine since 2019, two years before Russia invaded his country last year, offered the graduates of what he dubbed “one of the world’s greatest universities” a message centered around time, which he called “the most valuable resource on the planet.”
“Now you can look back at the time you have spent here at the university studying. Did you get everything you needed from it?” Zelenskyy asked. “You have even more time ahead of you — a whole lifetime.”
Zelenskyy, a former comedian and actor, is the sixth president of Ukraine. He spoke of his time on the front lines in Ukraine and dealing with the attacks by Russia. He said that although time is under each person’s control, Ukrainians are experiencing many things outside of their control. However, each day is an opportunity to grow in strength and save more lives, he said.
He said the United States hasn’t hesitated to share its time in aiding Ukraine and helping to preserve the free world.
Zelenskyy said he has “no doubt” that Hopkins’ graduates will continue that legacy as they become doctors, lawyers, engineers, politicians and more.
University President Ron Daniels gave Zelenskyy an honorary doctorate degree.
“President Zelenskyy, your vision, tenacity and unwavering belief in the power of democracy and freedom has been a constant source of inspiration to the people
of Ukraine and to millions and millions of others around the world who support your cause and the ideals for which you stand,” Daniels said at commencement. “While we are not able to do so in person today, we look forward with great anticipation and confidence to the time that we will present you with this diploma.”
Hopkins spokesperson Jill Rosen shared in a statement that the university believed Zelenskyy’s appearance would inspire the graduates.
The process of securing him for commencement began in March with the help of Anne Applebaum, a fellow with the university’s SNF Agora Institute, which is dedicated to global democracy. However, due to the uncertainty in Ukraine, Hopkins was unsure whether Zelenskyy would speak at commencement until a few days ago.
“Our hope was to host the president’s remarks live and as a surprise for graduates
and the world. Our IT and streaming teams worked closely with their Ukrainian counterparts to pull off a seamless technology experience, and it was a thrilling moment to be there when our speaker was unveiled in front of approximately 10,000 graduates and their families, and shared live on the web for audiences across the world,” Rosen wrote. “That President Zelenskyy chose to use this moment, with all that is at stake for the citizens of his country, to inspire our graduates and speak to young people across the world was a truly remarkable act of global leadership.”
The Class of 2023 offered him a standing ovation after the address, which lasted about 10 minutes.
“I’m certain you will continue to lead the free world,” Zelenskyy told them. “And this century will be our century, a century where freedom, innovation and democratic values reign.”