#uhgrad

[allutouch]

Just watched my oldest graduate from college!

Go Coog!!!

[parniarazi]

It’s unreal to think this is really it and we made it to graduation! I remember moving to Houston, all the struggles of adjusting to the city, commuting, and managing school and work. I remember meeting Pavel at our orientation and our first date at the art museum before school started. I remember his freshman dorm and staying up late to study. It’s crazy how fast time moves as you get older. I’m so grateful that I got to have this journey, with all its ups and downs, because I am definitely a better human at the end of it. I am smarter, I am more confident in my abilities, I am more willing to step out of my comfort zone, and I am braver in taking leaps beyond what I thought I could accomplish. I can manifest my reality. I also know how to manage my time and money to make the shit I want happen. I’ve attended over a dozen festivals in the last 3 years (and dozens more shows) and definitely had incredibly fun trips and times with friends and family. Having this balance is what kept my positive, energetic, and ready to keep going. 

Life so beautifully works in your favor when you surrender to the flow and you believe in yourself and your worthiness to earn the things you dream of. When you let go of the past and any resistance (which I had to work on for a long time) the right situations and people will arise in your life. I didn’t know for the longest time what the best route for me would be after graduation, but I knew my strengths and decided to put my best application and attitude forward for graduate school. During this final undergraduate year was when I finally started feeling fully comfortable and a part of my campus community, so I also felt like the only right thing to do was stay here for grad school. I am so fortunate and grateful to be receiving funding and admission as part of an amazing political science program at UH. Even though it will be incredibly challenging, I love learning and how it gives me the tools to be a better advocate for the causes I care about and I hope that stays with me to motivate me throughout this upcoming journey. When I get to put Dr. in front of my name, it will be worth it. 

The university environment is so uplifting because I love being around other smart and aware young people (both now and in the future when I hopefully work at a university as an adult). Especially at a diverse campus like UH, I get to hear dozens of different languages spoken, see people from all walks of life here to better themselves and be around faculty who are genuinely passionate about what they do and care for their students. I’ve been supported and encouraged so much throughout the last year as I was applying for grad school and I am looking forward to giving that same energy back to other young people pursuing their passions. At graduation, it was beautiful to see all the black and brown faces celebrating this incredible milestone in their lives and I want to spend my life making sure everyone has access to higher education. I am grateful to have ended up at UH by pure luck as the universe had it because it was the perfect place to build on my already existing interests and passions. 

Above all, I’m grateful for my beautiful family's constant support and Pavel for doing this whole thing together. Without the emotional and financial support my family provided me, I literally could not have done this. They are everything. I also could not have done this without Pavel’s constant help in making life easier for me and pushing me to reach my potential. The way he supports me, listens to me, makes efforts to better himself, and literally gives me all the love I could imagine is how I know he is meant to be my life partner. I trust him with everything and can’t wait to take on every new chapter in life with him. 

I am a little bit in disbelief still because it’s one of those things you think about and look forward to for a long time and then it happens so fast it almost leaves you spinning. 

Life is so beautiful and it feels so good to have accomplished this and had all the people I love healthy and happy by my side to celebrate with me this past weekend. 

[michealbui]

COOG NATION #Shasta spent yesterday guarding the rings for our Class of 2018 Fall Graduates. #4verCoogs #3rdWard #GoCoogs #UHGrad https://www.instagram.com/p/BrLhoUDgS_ocMnEoKNqYdPzD3TpWDAUeYJLA7M0/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=u90d39vxcvlb

[mrveteran]

In case you were not sure, this is my result too. #uhgrad #uhgrad2018 #uhgraduation https://www.instagram.com/p/BnomhajlCL485BgoIZOP6cwOTTHdrwGLiWQy-Y0/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=18hy6v9hhbljd

[mrveteran]

What a great day this was. This is the start the rest of our lives, and thank you to everyone who helped to get me here so far. You're the best too. #uhgrad #uhgrad2018 #uhgraduation (at Saint Albans) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bnod4X6FyKCqeV5fGBScddgusTaHM4e5gSw_Mc0/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=v6g8qmwa457q

[stevenvanegas]

Mommy... you’ve given me the world on a silver platter my whole life. You always told me that you’d support me in anything I ever wanted to do. No dream was too big, no expense was too high. You worked the craziest hours and had jobs that have drained the life from you just so that you could see your children be successful & happy. It wasn’t in vain mom. I’m here now. I accomplished something that some people only dream of and it’s all because of you. I’ve never told you this, but I’ve wanted nothing more in this life than to be you. I’ve wanted to be the leader you’ve been to your staffs in every hotel & department you’ve worked in. I wanted to be the hammer and feather that you carry yourself as. I’ve wanted to carry the legacy that you’ve stamped across the Houston hospitality scene and amplify it to its highest potential, and from what your colleagues tell me, I’m doing just that. I’m doing what I set out to do. You are my world. Everything I do, I do for you. This degree in Hotel & Restaurant Management is as much yours, as it is mine. 44 years of hospitality experience exist between the two of us. WE are hospitality. WE are the ones who change the properties we step into. WE are the next hospitality group to take make this world ours. And if I can promise you one last thing in this world, it’s that I’ll make it happen. Even if it kills me, you’ll see our names next to the greats that we’ve worked for all these years. I love you mom. Now & forever & beyond that. #uh #uhgraduation #uhgrad #hiltoncollege #wearehospitality #dreamsdocometrue #molinahospitalitygroup

[stevenvanegas]

So proud of my brother from another momma & daddy!!! 1 down, 2 to go!!! #uh #uhgrad #uhgraduation

[universityofhouston]

Leaving a legacy as big as his heart. We’re talking about Forever Coog, Houston Cougar Football Quarterback Greg Ward Jr. 

bit.ly/2hL7Yyd