Tianna Jameswhite, Editor-in-Chief, MSU Spokesman
Two brain surgeries, a heart surgery and 36 years after she initially enrolled, Michele Annette Johnson proudly strode across the stage to claim her diploma from Morgan State University.
Meanwhile, Johnson’s children cheered from the Hughes Stadium stands and her father gleamed from above.
Johnson, a 62-year-old minister and, as of Saturday, a graduate of Morgan’s College of Liberal Arts, began her journey at the university in 1990 but left to join the Air Force.
She left the military after six years, dedicating her time to earning certificates in the ministry and other community-centered services because it was her “calling.”
“God is the source of my life, and I follow what God has taught and I stand on the promises that He has given according to his words,” said Johnson. “That’s where I’m at with that. I can’t run from it. I can’t hide from it. So, I do the work.”
Having endured many struggles through her life, Johnson related to the speech delivered by Bryan Stevenson, the keynote speaker and this year’s only recipient of a honorary degree.
Stevenson, the founder and executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative, a Montgomery, Alabama-based human rights organization, focused his talk on the importance of acknowledging ancestors who struggled to survive in America while honoring their legacy by uplifting those who don’t have access to education.
Stevenson recalled stories about his family members, like his great-grandfather who learned how to read despite it being illegal for Black people to do so at the time.
And with that knowledge, Stevenson’s great-grandfather read the newspaper to his community so they too could be informed.
He also spoke of his grandmother who learned how to read from his great grandfather. She’d hug him and ask “Bryan, do you still feel me hugging you,” which taught him the humanity of others through embrace.
Stevenson, who spoke extemporaneously, told the Morgan audience one can only help others if you look past the narrative set for them.
Johnson wore a university pendant around her neck with a picture of her father taped to the back.
“He had a saying that stays on my mind, ‘Nothing beats your failure but a try,’” said Johnson. “I tried and I made it, and I’m victorious!”
Johnson said she will pursue a master’s degree in teaching at her alma mater, saying “Morgan is the place to be!” She hopes to take what she learns on her academic journey back into helping her immediate community.
Johnson and the other 867 bachelor’s degree recipients shared the moment with Morgan alumni who were in their position 50 years before as members of the first class to graduate from the institution when it became a university in July 1975.
Saturday’s class, when added to December’s bachelor’s candidates and the school’s doctoral and masters graduates , brought the total for the academic year to 1,876, a 24% increase in graduates compared to the spring 2025 class.
Throughout the day, the idea that reaching commencement is not a singular effort, but a collaboration of faculty, staff, family and other support systems.
But as students were lining up to receive their diplomas, many visitors were restricted from re-entering the stadium.
According to security, the stadium was overcrowded, becoming a health hazard to the university fire marshal.
Guests began to crowd the stadium’s side gates, begging security to let them in. One officer was heard threatening to detain a visitor for pressing on the gate.
“I think this needs to be a little bit more orderly,” said spectator Marlisa Smith, who came to support a graduating family member.
Smith continued: “You have parents and grandparents, aunts and uncles who have traveled far and wide. They cannot get in to view an occasion that is only going to happen once.”
Smith was separated from her mother, who was waiting for the gates to reopen. They talked to each other across the gate’s bars.
Smith said the “policy might have inadvertently disadvantaged guests.”
The university’s website said that guest tickets were not required for the outdoor commencement. According to Morgan’s public relations, the stadium holds a capacity of 15,000,
Still, some visitors said they could not find seating.
With temperatures in the upper 70s, Morgan staff passed water bottles through the gate’s openings.
“It was a warm day,” said visitor Marsha McFadden, who was present to see her goddaughter graduate. “So if they had people selling water like they do at the baseball game, that would have been helpful.”
By noon, several guests were allowed into the side-entrance gate, but they had missed at least 30 minutes of the ceremony. At the adjacent University Student Center, dozens of visitors crowded the building looking for food, water and seating.
Though prospective graduates were informed of the university’s commencement code-of-conduct, some families brought their own banners to the graduation, despite it being on the “prohibited items at commencement” list. In addition, many students and families left early after the turning of the tassel.
One student fell on-stage after kicking her leg into the air, as members of the audience gasped.
“People can really get hurt doing stuff like that,” said Aria Melville, a 2008 Morgan alum who saw what happened.
McFaddin suggested that the university upgrade the sound and video quality as it was difficult to hear Stevenson’s speech, not to mention the moment when her loved one received her diploma.
“The names that were listed (on the stage’s screen) were later in the program. Luckily we stayed and continued to watch,” said McFaddin.
Still, the cloudless day, the gathering of friends and relatives and the performances of Greek organizations, made for lasting memories, smiles and hugs.
“To see my goddaughter choose this school after being accepted into so many others warms my heart,” said McFaddin.
Managing editor Karla Daniels contributed to this article.
