Speakers Urge 2026 Grads to Pursue Purpose Over Prestige

‘You don’t have to do what other people think is cool,’ said Wendy Kopp ’89. ‘You can decide.’

Craig Robinson ’83

Ryan Campbell / Princeton University

By Lia Opperman ’25

Published July 2, 2026

2 min read

As graduates entered one of the toughest job markets in recent years, Princeton’s Class Day and Baccalaureate speakers delivered a steady drumbeat to the Class of 2026: The path ahead should not be driven by prestige, competition, or a predetermined plan, and graduates should do what they love to use their Princeton education in the service of others.

At Class Day, Wendy Kopp ’89, founder of Teach For America and Teach For All, told graduates that they are “free from running this race” that led them to Princeton.

“There is no application portal opening tonight. There will be no committee ranking you. And you don’t have to do what other people think is cool,” she said. “You can decide.”

Kopp urged graduates to think of how their choices would shape both their lives and the broader world, arguing that meaningful change requires people to be close to society’s most pressing challenges.

A day earlier at Baccalaureate, Craig Robinson ’83, executive director of the National Association of Basketball Coaches and a former University trustee, shared a similar message.

Robinson encouraged graduates to embrace “the swerve,” a term he learned from his sister, former first lady Michelle Obama ’85, to describe life’s unexpected changes of direction. Reflecting on his own career, which has included professional basketball, investment banking, college coaching, and sports administration, he urged graduates to pursue success based on fulfillment, growth, relationships, and impact.

“We spend years climbing ladders only to discover the ladder was leaning against the wrong wall,” Robinson said. “The paycheck may look good. The title may impress people at Reunions. But if you wake up every day disconnected from your purpose, eventually success starts to feel surprisingly empty.”

Class Day also featured recognition of students with outstanding leadership, service, academic, and athletic records. Alvan Flanders, detective sergeant in the Department of Public Safety, and police service dog Coach were among the 10 honorary members who joined the Class of 2026.

Class heralds Allen Shen ’26 and Tyler Wilson ’26 delivered humorous remarks that balanced celebration with sarcasm and self-deprecation.

Wilson joked that Princeton students, despite their intelligence and accomplishments, are “generally quite stupid,” citing everything from clicking on spam email job offers (“No one is paying $400 an hour for a remote research assistant!”) to not knowing where the towpath is.

Yet, he explained his pride to be in what he described as a long line of idiots: “People who are stupid enough to think that they can actually change the world for the better. People who chase down problems in need of solving, glass ceilings in need of smashing, and status quos that demand disruption.”

Published in the July 2026 Issue

1 Response

Peter J. Greenhill ’81

1 Week Ago

Pursuing Noble, Altruistic Goals

I was very heartened to see that Craig Robinson ’83 and Wendy Kopp ’89 spoke to the graduating Class of 2026 about altruistic purpose in life as a far better option than pursuit of the almighty dollar and prestige. Their words were noble and their words were true. It is a horrible, tragic waste to take one’s learning from Princeton and use it for selfish, shallow ends like finance instead of using it to improve the lives of other people and of other living things around us, or to create beauty, in whatever form, for the world. How many brilliant mathematicians, writers, research scientists, musicians, activists, inventors, artists, teachers, humanitarians, etc. will the world never see because they sold their souls? Undoubtedly, to some students present — maybe many, most unfortunately — one could apply the well-worn words “went in one ear” during the speeches and “then out the other” as soon as the speeches ended, their indoctrination towards the venal and the mercenary having already been powerfully inculcated over their first 22 years. But if Mr. Robinson and Ms. Kopp inspired or changed the mind of even one student, saved even one soul from destroying itself by going into work based entirely on greed at the expense of countless other people, the time and effort they took to write their speeches, travel to the campus, and deliver those speeches will have been well worth it. If only they could save many more.