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A crowd of graduates wearing black caps and gowns is seen from behind, with one decorated mortarboard featuring the OSU logo and the number “26” prominently centered, indicating a graduation ceremony.

“Stick to It”: The faces of OSU-Tulsa’s Class of 2026

Friday, May 22, 2026

Media Contact: Aaron Campbell | Communications Coordinator | 918-594-8046 | aaron.ross.campbell@okstate.edu

As graduates crossed the stage at the Oklahoma State University–Tulsa 2026 Spring Commencement Ceremony, many reflected not only on earning their degrees, but on the determination, support and opportunities that shaped their journeys.

We caught up with some graduates before the ceremony to hear their thoughts about perseverance, community and the excitement of what comes next. Their stories highlight the diverse paths that led them to commencement day — and the ambitions carrying them forward beyond it.

A person wearing a black graduation gown with an orange honor stole and medal stands inside a gymnasium, posing for a portrait while others in academic attire gather in the background near tables.

“I am the transportation supervisor at Ben E. Keith. I’ve been working there for over 20 years. I’m working on transitioning into accounting. I went back to school because work paid for it and it was a good way to make myself look better. I went to school right out of high school 20 years ago and I kind of was a lazy screwup when I was 19, quit going to class, so I had a 1.7 [GPA]. I had a 4.0 here. So, stick to it.

I was frankly shocked that OSU was as supportive and amazing as it is. It’s just such a cool community, especially for being such a big public school.”

- Dan Shepherd
Accounting

A graduate wearing a black cap and gown with an orange honor stole and medal stands indoors near a window and dark curtain, posing for a formal graduation portrait.


“I have an internship at Walmart actually, I started a few months ago. Full stack development, so developing backend and frontend coding stuff, so, pretty exciting.”

- Ivan Garcia
Computer science

Two graduates wearing black caps and gowns with orange medals stand side by side indoors in front of large windows, posing together for a graduation photo.

(Sage) “I loved [the OSU-Tulsa counseling master’s program], I thought it was great. The professors are very knowledgeable and everyone was very close with each other, so it was really great to have a cohort to go through everything with.”

(Victoria) “Couldn’t have said it better myself.”

- Sage Murry (left) and Victoria Hernandez (right)
Counseling psychology

A graduate wearing a black cap and gown with an orange stole and medal stands in front of a dark curtain backdrop, posing for a formal graduation portrait.

“I’m going to work for a company called Summit, they’re owned by Haliburton. I’ll be starting in Tulsa and transitioning between here and Houston and Midland, Texas. I’m ready to get started, go into the real world and make a difference.

“Show up every day, give it your all and the results will do the rest.”

- Gage Foster
Finance