COLUMBIA, Tenn. - Columbia State Community College marked the end of Fall 2025 on December 13 with a commencement ceremony in the Webster Athletic Center that celebrated 162 degree and certificate candidates walking across the stage. In total, 478 students are anticipated to graduate in Fall 2025, reflecting the college's role as an educational anchor for Middle Tennessee.
Dr. Janet F. Smith, Columbia State president, opened the ceremony by framing graduation as a day of accomplishment and recognition. "Today is a special day for several reasons," Smith said. "First and foremost, it is a day of celebration of accomplishments. It is a day of recognition that these soon to be graduates set a goal and accomplished it."
Robert Rogers, a Columbia native and dealer principal of Parks Motor Sales, delivered the commencement address. Rogers attended Columbia State before transferring to Middle Tennessee State University, where he graduated cum laude in 2003 with a degree in business administration and marketing. He has spent his career at Parks Motor Sales, managing its operations and continuing the dealership's seven-decade legacy in the Columbia community. Rogers serves on the Columbia State Foundation Board and chairs the Frontier District of the Boy Scouts of America, where he earned the rank of Eagle Scout. He is also active in the Columbia Kiwanis Club and with Mental Mules, a group dedicated to raising funds for local charities through their annual 24-hour walk. Over one hundred thousand dollars has been raised for local causes so far.
Rogers grounded his address in three stories designed to speak to the graduates' new chapter. He began with advice he had heard from a preacher about "skylarking" - a Navy term for having fun both on and off duty. "With this new freedom you're stepping into, with all these possibilities in front of you, 'Go do a little skylarking,'" Rogers said.
His second story centered on the "road angels" who volunteer to support runners in the Last Annual Vol State 500K, a 300-mile race across Tennessee. These volunteers offer food and water to runners they have never met, receiving no medals or recognition. "We're so obsessed these days with achievement, accomplishment, success, resumes, titles, being the runner," Rogers reflected. "But what if more of us chose to be the angel instead?" His final story used 100 pennies as a metaphor for a person's life span. "You're not promised tomorrow," Rogers said. "Don't waste a minute... Make your pennies count. And even better, make them count in a way that affects the world after you're out of pennies." He closed by challenging each graduate to change their world, one day at a time.