EPISODE · May 27, 2020 · 9 MIN
Ep.10 - Dear Class of 2020
from Global Transitions · host Aleka Bilan
This is my open letter to the high school students graduating during the pandemic, a global cohort of graduates. I would like to acknowledge the loss of their rituals of celebration, their sadness, their anger -- and their resolve, their possibility as humanity's future, a cohort like none other. In case you missed them, here are the celebrity commencement speeches and USAmerican celebrations from: Oprah Winfrey - https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/15/us/oprah-winfrey-2020-commencement-speech.html; Former US President Barack Obama - https://youtu.be/sTFWC1PiLVE; and John Krasinki's Some Good News - https://youtu.be/IweS2CPSnbI. And if you're unfamiliar with, or need a refresher on the "RAFT" acronym (Reconciliation, Affirmation, Farewells, Think Destination) - please see two seminal works on this topic: "Third Culture Kids, 3rd Edition: Growing up Among Worlds" by Ruth Van Reken, David C. Pollock, and Michael V. Pollock and "Safe Passage: how mobility affects people & what international schools should do about it" by Doug Ota.
What this episode covers
This is my open letter to the high school students graduating during the pandemic, a global cohort of graduates. I would like to acknowledge the loss of their rituals of celebration, their sadness, their anger -- and their resolve, their possibility as humanity's future, a cohort like none other. In case you missed them, here are the celebrity commencement speeches and USAmerican celebrations from: Oprah Winfrey - https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/15/us/oprah-winfrey-2020-commencement-speech.html; Former US President Barack Obama - https://youtu.be/sTFWC1PiLVE; and John Krasinki's Some Good News - https://youtu.be/IweS2CPSnbI. And if you're unfamiliar with, or need a refresher on the "RAFT" acronym (Reconciliation, Affirmation, Farewells, Think Destination) - please see two seminal works on this topic: "Third Culture Kids, 3rd Edition: Growing up Among Worlds" by Ruth Van Reken, David C. Pollock, and Michael V. Pollock and "Safe Passage: how mobility affects people & what international schools should do about it" by Doug Ota.
NOW PLAYING
Ep.10 - Dear Class of 2020
No transcript for this episode yet
Similar Episodes
Apr 21, 2026 ·26m
Mar 2, 2026 ·27m
Mar 2, 2026 ·8m
Feb 25, 2026 ·14m
Jan 14, 2026 ·32m