Jadrian Wooten, distinguished educator and researcher in the Virginia Tech Department of Economics, delivered an impassioned plea to 2025 graduates in his commencement speech for the College of Science.
Good afternoon Hokies.
My name is Jadrian Wooten, and yes, I’m an economist. Yes, the Department of Economics is part of the College of Science at Virginia Tech. I was just as confused to learn that when I applied for the job, but I’ve come to love how amazing it is to be surrounded by so many people who care about the scientific way of thinking.
I promise I won’t talk to you today about inflation rates, tariffs, or the stock market. That’s not just for your sake — it’s for mine too. After all, this is a celebration, and those topics have been ruining dinner conversations for years.
But I am an economist, and I want to talk about something much more important than any headline or hot take — something that every graduate here, from biology to chemistry to data science, is uniquely equipped to face: defending the value of science in a world that’s increasingly skeptical of it.
I was told I have 3-5 minutes to fill, so let me tell you a story about myself.
I am fortunate to travel a lot for work, and when I do, I wear Virginia Tech gear — probably like some of your family members are wearing today. The moment I sit on a plane or stand in line at a coffee shop, someone inevitably asks, “What’s your connection to Virginia Tech?” And I try to brush it off with a simple, “I work there.”
But it never works. They follow up. “Well, what do you do?”
So I say, “I’m a professor.”
And that’s when I start cracking open a book or checking my phone. I’m hoping that’s a cue to end the conversation. It’s not. They always ask what I teach.
“I teach economics.”
Can you guess the most common response? It likely isn’t much different than the response many of you (or your family in the stands) made when you heard that an economist would deliver this speech.
“Ugh. I hated economics.”
Look, I get it. Maybe you had a rough experience. For the people on the plane, I usually quip, “Sounds like you didn’t have me as your teacher.” Or better yet, for the people who clearly went to that unnamed school to the north of us, “You should’ve gone to Virginia Tech.”
But here’s the thing — many of you have probably heard similar responses when you tell people what you study. “Biology? Too many body parts to remember.” “Physics? That’s just math in disguise.” “Data science? I don’t trust algorithms.”
Some people HATED learning the field that you fell in love with. But increasingly, it seems that some people hate it because they don’t believe in it. That’s a different kind of problem. And that’s where you come in.
Don’t be like me — don’t hide your field by sliding on headphones or disappearing into a book. Stand up for science. Defend it. Share it. Explain it.
At Virginia Tech, we’ve worked hard to make our economists better communicators. I believe that my friends and colleagues in other departments have done the same for their future scientists. You leave here not just with formulas and lab techniques, but with the ability to help others understand why it matters.
Some of you may have seen a hit show called Severance, where workers don’t know exactly what their company does. They just know their work is mysterious and important.
That’s what science feels like to a lot of people: mysterious and important. But you? You’ve seen behind the curtain. It’s now your job to open that curtain a little more for the rest of the world to see the work you’re doing.
We need you. Not just for your discoveries, but for your voice.
Congratulations, Class of 2025. Go be mysterious. Go be important. But most of all — go be heard.