Katie Ledecky speaks at Commencement marked by protests

The 134th Commencement ceremony was held at Stanford Stadium today, where the University awarded long-awaited degrees to the Class of 2025. Joined by family, friends and faculty, the graduates celebrated the culmination of their academic journeys, which began in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

In his first Commencement speech as president, University president Jonathan Levin ’94 reflected on his memories as a Stanford student, the global impact of the Stanford community and ongoing criticisms and disputes facing higher education.

“I can confidently say that the [Class of 2025] will be remembered as the class that brought back fun,” Levin said, referring to the so-called “War on Fun” that drew controversy in recent years. 

During his speech, approximately 150 students walked out of the ceremony in protest of the University’s actions regarding the war in Gaza as well as their actions dealing with the Trump administration.

Provost Jenny Martinez recognized the graduates for completing their degree requirements while Levin conferred their degrees, officially marking the transition from students to alumni. The total graduating class — including undergraduates and graduate students — consisted of 5,271 people, Stanford’s largest in history, with students’ ages ranging from 18 to 67.

Stanford’s youngest commencement speaker, Katie Ledecky ’20, a psychology alumna and 14-time Olympic medalist, returned to the Farm to address the Class of 2025. Ledecky missed her own graduation while training for the Tokyo Olympic trials. In an interview with The Daily, she said, “This is my first time really experiencing a graduation… I’m excited to just crash their events and get a feel for that sort of celebration.”

In her speech, she connected her swimming career with the nature of graduation. “When I was a little kid, my dad taught me that swim races could be decided by just a hundredth of a second… and that exercise taught me just how fast time flies by,” Ledecky said.

Graduation kicked off with the Wacky Walk, a beloved tradition with seniors displaying their creative outfits — typically reflective of campus culture or social commentary — as the graduates entered the field. Groups dressed as floating ducks, for example, poked fun at Stanford’s so-called Duck Syndrome. 

Notable looks this year included the campus package center lockers, a group dressed up as a pirate ship labelled “Jane Stanford’s Revenge” and Stanford parking tickets.

Lindsey McKhann ‘25 and Andrew Gerges ‘25 wore TreeHouse margarita costumes from the popular campus restaurant “to pay tribute to something that was critical to our time here at Stanford, something that whenever we needed it, was there to help us find community and seek kinship in a shared love and joy with our people,” McKhann told The Daily. 

Following the Wacky walk, Levin gave his commencement speech during which the walk-out occurred. The protest was advertised through an Instagram post asking graduates to “Join the Class of 2025 in rejecting Stanford’s insatiable greed, as they cower to the federal administration, maintain complicity in genocide, and prioritize profit over students.” 

The group held signs reading “The People’s University” and carried Palestinian flags. 

An organizer of the walkout, Emma R. ’25, who requested to withhold her last name due to concerns about academic repercussions, told The Daily, “We walked out in protest of the University’s complicity, in support of Palestine and in recognition of all the Palestinians who should have been graduating this year but haven’t, because they’ve been murdered.”

Members of the walkout also hosted an alternative commencement called “The People’s Commencement” just minutes away from the stadium at the Arboretum Grove. “We wanted to still offer graduates the opportunity to celebrate their achievements while also not supporting an institution that is complicit in genocide,” Emma said.

Shortly after Levin began his remarks and before the walkout began, a small plane began circling the stadium, trailing a banner that read, “Congrats! Don’t work for Elon [Musk].” The plane reappeared more than once, continuing its appearance even after the main ceremony concluded.

Following Levin and Martinez, Ledecky’s speech drew on her experiences as a student-athlete and her passion for setting ambitious goals. Reflecting on her Stanford career, she emphasized the importance of community.

“Some of my best friends have come out of Stanford, my teammates, but also some of the professors that I’ve stayed in touch with and some other classmates,” Ledecky told The Daily. “I just look back on my time at Stanford with such fondness and with such great memories.”

She recalled one particularly spontaneous week with the Stanford Band, where she learned to play the saxophone for a football game. She said, “I had never played the saxophone before… By the end of the week, I had the hang of it a little bit.”

In her speech, Ledecky spoke about not comparing oneself to others. “You don’t have to win the race. You just need to win your race,” she said.

Her address resonated with graduates navigating their next steps. “I would just encourage all the graduates to continue to set those big goals for themselves,” Ledecky told The Daily, urging students to leverage their Stanford education to pursue their passions. 

Graduate students joined the celebration with enthusiasm. The Graduate School of Business was especially lively, with students popping champagne and confetti and throwing beach balls into the air.

Charity McDowell ‘25, a Masters Student in Community Health and Prevention Research said, “I feel like it’s really just an accumulation of my years throughout school… Now it’s just kind of like a reward, like graduating from [Stanford], so it’s a real blessing and honor.”

Families, students and faculty agreed on how Stanford’s impact lies in its community. Johnbull Okpara, father of a member of the Class of 2025, resonated with Ledecky’s remarks on his daughter’s experience with Stanford. “This school, the environment, the camaraderie, the folks around her, professors, the work she’s done here, the whole package has been outstanding,” he told The Daily.

As the Class of 2025 packs up to leave the Farm, Commencement marks both an end and a beginning. Ledecky closed her remarks by telling the recent graduates to “take your mark and go out there and make your mark.”

The atmosphere outside the stadium was emotional, energized and full of pride. Chidimma Okpara ’25, graduating from the Graduate School of Science Community Health & Prevention Research said, “I’m elated, and just so excited too. And I think the [commencement] was just a cherry on top.”

Dawn Royster ’26 contributed reporting.

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