As President Trump and Cabinet members made graduation rounds nationwide, Gainesville native and Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins returned to North Georgia to address graduates at Piedmont University in Demorest. Collins delivered the keynote addresses at Piedmont’s spring commencement ceremonies on Friday, May 9.
Piedmont awarded 205 undergraduate degrees—including 148 to first-generation students—and 164 graduate degrees at the Johnny Mize Athletic Center.
“Graduation is a life-changing milestone. We are proud to welcome you to the Piedmont alumni family,” said University President Marshall Criser.
Collins: Light on politics, big on passion
In a 15-minute address to business and education graduates, Secretary Collins urged them to stay curious, embrace fear, accept life’s turns, and pursue their passions.
“Passion is the only thing that’s driven me,” he said. “I am a kid from a trooper and a wonderful woman who took care of senior adults in Gainesville, Georgia, went to North Hall High School, and now I sit in the Cabinet Room of the White House.”
A former Georgia state representative and congressman, Collins reflected on the winding career path that led him to lead the nation’s largest civilian agency. Before entering politics, he worked as a businessman, Baptist minister, U.S. Airman, and lawyer. He referenced President Trump only once, recounting his early ambitions in the 1980s: “I was going to be the next [Lee] Iacocca, or by the way, back then, I kid you not, I was going to be the next Donald Trump in business,” he said.
Decades later, as the ranking Republican on the House Judiciary Committee, Collins defended Trump during his first impeachment inquiry.
Piedmont’s invitation to Collins as the keynote speaker drew criticism from some students and alumni. He addressed the nation’s political polarization by lamenting a lack of curiosity in public life.
“I’m sure in the room this size, there are some that will disagree with me, there are some that will agree with me, and there are some who really don’t care who I am, and that’s fine,” he said. “I want to know more about you; maybe why we disagree. Why we find common ground.”
Embracing fear and detours
Collins said curiosity drives his daily work at the VA. “I ask why every day. Why do we do this? Why do we do that? Why do we ask this question? Why do we help this person? Why do we not do it this way?” He called ignorance “the softest pillow you will ever lay your head on.”
Addressing the fear many new graduates face, Collins stressed, “Fear is not your enemy. Fear is ok. Fear is fine. Fear is ok as long as you don’t let it consume you.”
And, with a nod to the terrain surrounding them, Collins reminded graduates, “I want you to understand, just like the mountain roads that you drive every time that you come to this campus, that life is like a mountain road. No life, for the most part, is a straight expressway. Don’t keep asking for it to be simple because simple is boring, and many times, boring will not take you where you need to go.”
He challenged them to “Get lost every once in a while.”
Student and Faculty Honors
Piedmont held a second graduation ceremony for students in the arts and sciences and health care programs.
The university recognized outstanding student and employee achievements during Friday’s ceremonies.
Students Dakota Rose Chen and Riley Robinson received the Michael and Emily Robertson Kindness Award. Prestine Boyd earned the H.M. Stewart Sr. Award of Excellence for the highest GPA in the Class of 2025.
The university also honored faculty and staff. Professor Tricia Shriver received the Vulcan Teaching Excellence Award. Dr. Mike Friedline and Dr. Candice Southall received the Outstanding Undergraduate and Graduate Advisor Awards, respectively.
