By Jimmy Hart and Nancy DeGennaro

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Middle Tennessee State University celebrated 722 new graduates during the 2025 summer commencement Saturday, Aug. 9, inside Murphy Center, ushering the latest crop of Blue Raider alumni into their professional careers or pursuit of advanced degrees.

Hardly skipping a beat following graduation, 22-year-old Eva Smith of Murfreesboro is walking right into her very first post-college job as community impact coordinator for United Way of South Central Tennessee.

“I prayed for something where I could serve children and families, and God answered,” said Smith, who earned her bachelor’s degree in human development and family science. “Having such broad range understanding how humans age and how we interact in our personal relationships has really prepared me for role like this.”

Suzanne Sutherland, a professor in the Department of History and immediate past president of the Faculty Senate, leaned on her love and study of the Renaissance period for her congratulatory keynote remarks, asking graduates, “What would someone from the Renaissance, maybe a Tuscan peasant or even Leonardo da Vinci, make of the world you’re graduating into?”

They would surely “be amazed” at modern advances in areas such as medicine and technology, Sutherland said, yet the brilliance of a Michelangelo or a Shakespeare came from the “unbridled curiosity and a deep desire to learn” that marked the Renaissance period even as they were “in the midst of profound human suffering” in the form of rampant violence, poverty, disease and illiteracy.

Sutherland told graduates that they were heirs and beneficiaries of that Renaissance spirit and should thus “let problems inspire you. … Keep learning. Keep moving us forward.” But she cautioned them not to try to do it alone as they navigate life’s many twists and turns.

“So what should you do with all this good fortune and all the knowledge and skills you’ve worked so hard to acquire? Don’t worry. That’s not a question you need to answer today,” she said. “As others have said before me: Life isn’t a pop quiz — it’s more like a messy group project (and I know how much you love group projects). Your own masterpiece will take time. There will be mistakes. There will be moments when you feel completely lost. That’s OK.”

Experiential Learning paved path for student success

MTSU President Sidney A. McPhee encouraged the summer graduates to take pride in graduating from an institution that consistently provides “innovative, and often top in the nation, academic programs attuned to industry needs and geared to accelerate our students in their careers.”

“We look forward to seeing the far-reaching impact as you apply what you have learned during your studies,” McPhee told the graduates. “I encourage you to remain involved with your alma mater, keep up with its success and progress, and be an advocate for the opportunities you were provided here so that others might follow.”

Watch a video recap of the ceremony below:

Graduate Smith is off to a great start in making an impact. In her new role, she’ll oversee the nonprofit Dolly Parton Imagination Library for Rutherford and Cannon counties, which provides a free book each month to registered children from birth to age 5. She’ll also coordinate the Born Learning Academy for parents of young children, among other community-centered projects.

One of the biggest ways MTSU prepared her for the role is through the Experiential Learning, or EXL, program, which provides real-world career experiences for students through a variety of courses in various fields of study.

“My EXL classes were by far the most memorable and offered me extensive hands-on experience to help me understand what I like to do, what I’m good at and what I didn’t like,” said Smith, who credits the mentorship she received from professors Sam Weir, Claire Cook and Rebecca Oldham in the Human Development and Family Science program.

“Dr. Cook even encouraged me to apply for an internship with United Way — and that opportunity led to where I am today,” Smith said.

Of the 722 students who graduated Saturday, 490 were undergraduates and 232 were graduate students, including 205 master’s recipients, seven education-specialist recipients and 20 doctoral recipients. In addition, four graduate students will be receiving graduate certificates, according to the latest information from the Registrar’s Office.

Students from all MTSU’s colleges — Graduate Studies, Basic and Applied Sciences, Behavioral and Health Sciences, the Jones College of Business, the College of Education, Liberal Arts and the University College — were conferred degrees during the ceremony.

You can access a full pdf version of the commencement program.

For those unable to attend in person, the ceremonies were live-streamed with recordings available on the livestream channel, on True Blue TV and on the university’s Facebook page and YouTube channel.

With the summer 2025 commencement ceremony, MTSU has awarded approximately 190,600 degrees to its students, including associate, bachelor’s, master’s, educational specialist and doctoral degrees, since its 1911 founding.

The university’s 2025-26 academic year begins Aug. 25, with the first official day of fall 2025 classes.

MTSU will formally welcome its new freshman class of 2029 and new transfer students at University Convocation in Murphy Center beginning at 4 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 23. That special event, which will be livestreamed, will feature Bob Welch, co-author of “Healing Wounds,” the MTSU summer reading selection.

— Jimmy Hart (Jimmy.Hart@mtsu.edu) and Nancy DeGennaro (Nancy.DeGennaro@mtsu.edu)