Every year on the last day of classes, Trent University's Last Lecture event offers a special send-off for the graduating class, inviting nominated speakers to share personal stories, reflections and lessons learned. The speakers represent students, staff, faculty and alumni, offering different perspectives and advice for the Trent community.  

While their journeys and voices differed, their words echoed with shared meaning. They urged listeners to challenge the stories they’ve been told about success, about identity, about what comes next; and to rewrite those narratives to suit their truths, or to toss them away entirely. 

Here are some of the words of wisdom shared at this year’s event:  

“Chase what sparks your curiosity. Because when you do, everything changes. You start showing up differently, you start believing in yourself, and that’s when the magic happens.”  

• Paris Amery (Otonabee College), fourth-year student in Forensics and Anthropology, specializing in Bioarchaeology with an option in Pre-Medical Studies

“You have to find your poetic voice. We have lots of problems with how we’re communicating right now. Both with people to people, but also people to natural eco-systems. We all need to make meaningful connections to the natural world. But you also need to convince, persuade, and argue for others to do it as well.” 

• Dr. Eric Sager, faculty in Trent School of the Environment

“I wouldn’t have made it through my undergrad had I not challenged the idea that no one could really help me... and I can guarantee that master’s degree would have stayed on that hard drive if I had not challenged the idea that I had to figure things out by myself." 

• Susan Thompson ’88 (Champlain College), Academic Skills instructor, B.A. in Sociology and M.A. in Canadian Studies

“Today, as an advisor, a coach, a facilitator, I am encouraging my clients all the time to challenge not just the word normal, but any other deeply engrained concepts as well. What is enough? What is beautiful? What is success? These words are like normal. They carry the assumptions that can limit or liberate us depending on how we define them."

• Jessica Ferguson ’91 (Otonabee College), entrepreneur and human resources professional, B.A. in Psychology and Sociology

Thank you to Paris, Eric, Sue, and Jessica for marking this milestone with reflections to help carry through every challenge, change, and choice that lies ahead.

View the full recording of The Last Lecture.