2022 GHP Commencement Ceremony

2022 Graduate Representative's Address

by Isaiah Christian Antonio (安仰深) 

 

Thank you, April for that wonderful introduction. Let me start this class speech by welcoming our esteemed guests. NTU faculty and staff, parents, and friends, welcome. I am privileged to speak on behalf of the second graduating class from the Global Health Program.

When we started this program, I never thought that we would all become so close. Before beginning classes, Elisabeth set zoom meetings up for us to meet each other, but not everyone was interested. In the beginning, Bri, Winston, and I even talked about how we felt no one in the cohort was interested in making friends. But, interestingly, a few weeks after Rowan and Stephanie arrived, everyone became so close. I’m wondering, what magic do you two have?

Moving on, it is unbelievable that we all are here now, even Elo all the way in Nigeria, wearing our graduation gowns and finally graduating. Just last year, we all tried our best to understand epi and biostats. We even thought that only Rowan, Jess, and Bri would pass the class (haha). To understand the course, we set up so many group study sessions—however, they always turned into a gossip session by the time Stephanie arrived.

We also shared many memorable trips together: Going to Tainan and learning about the the World Vegetable Center. Celebrating our Christmas day in a garbage incineration plant! And who could forget our trip to Hualien? No one will forget how loud Winston snores (haha). We have learned so much about the Indigenous Peoples in Taiwan and how it is imperative to incorporate culturally and traditionally appropriate practices into public health. Aside from this, we were even able to make strong friendships outside our cohort!

We had many fun moments together, but we can all agree that not everything was rainbows and sunshine. We had moments where we fought and had misunderstandings, but we always communicated and resolved our differences. In the end, we taught each other how to be genuinely ourselves, be selfless, and show up for our friendships.

Our experiences together helped us to not only grow emotionally, but also academically. Our professors were amazing, but our classmates were often the best teachers. We have learned about so many different global health issues from one another. For example, HIV in Nigeria, human blood groups in relation to COVID-19, and even now we all know what nonmonogamy is.

When we began this program, there was so much uncertainty about each of our futures in Taiwan and our research topics. Without a clear thesis topic, most of us also struggled to look for an adviser that would be the best personal fit. We also worked so tirelessly in our courses: doing long essays, preparing class presentations, and studying for exams. In addition, some of us even had the double burden of learning an entire program in a language that we were not used to using. However, everything was made bearable due to the collective spirit of our cohort. We have aided and uplifted each other in the best and hardest of times.

Now, not all of us are leaving this program today. Some of us have willingly decided to stay longer to produce more comprehensive research that will help solve pressing global health issues. We have Elisabeth, who has expanded her research to more thoroughly address homelessness in Taiwan; Katie, who is doing essential work on understanding the mental health of migrant workers here; and Wei-Yan, who among us had the most complicated ethical approval process, is now collecting data at the National Taiwan University.

And for those who have completed the program this semester, we have put so much effort into presenting comprehensive research results despite limitations in time and budget. Stephanie is proof of this; regardless of the language barrier she experienced between her and her participants, she strived to put the experiences of Taiwanese Persons with Disabilities into the light.

We are now on the last stretch of our journey in this program. I am glad that some of us are already certain of what we will do after the program. We have those who are already set on entering medical school, being a nurse practitioner, and continuing on as a professor in the future. Meanwhile some of us, like me, have not yet figured out our paths. Regardless, I believe that we will all be agents of global health, wherever we are.

Well, I am not good at endings. So, let’s not let this be the end, only a new beginning. The short time we’ve had in Taiwan and in this program has been joyful and educational. We have all struggled and succeeded together; therefore, even though the future may be unclear, one thing is certain, the knowledge we have obtained from this program and the relationships we have built will forever remain.