Utah State University Uintah Basin Celebrates 2025 Graduating Class

Utah State University Uintah Basin is proud to have celebrated its class of 2025 on April 26 as part of USU’s 138th commencement ceremony. The class of 2025 consists of 145 individuals earning 76 associate, 61 bachelor’s, 20 master’s degrees, and five certificates. The graduation ceremony was held at Union High School in Roosevelt.

“We are here to honor the 145 students who will be graduating. They are a diverse group, each with their own journey and are worthy of celebration,” said David Law, USU Uintah Basin associate vice president.

Law welcomed the graduates and then introduced the student and commencement speaker.

Cara Murray, who graduated with a bachelor’s degree in health education and promotion, then addressed the audience as the student speaker. Murray shared her story of not feeling “smart” enough for college, and the journey she took in her own self-confidence and success. While feeling inadequate, she took the leap of faith to begin her journey, and she found out she was more than capable. She will now become an assistant professor in USU Extension.

“Beyond the titles, higher education gave me something greater: confidence, purpose, and a sense of empowerment I didn’t know I could claim,” she said. “It proved to me that I am indeed smart enough. At the end of the day, it was my internal drive, my own determination—that carried me here. That is what empowerment looks like, and that is what Utah State University has helped me build over the past four years.”

Murray closed by encouraging graduates to believe in themselves and their abilities, and the things they have learned at USU.

“As you move forward, remember that success isn’t about having every step planned out,” she said. “This is your commencement into a life where you keep growing, keep pushing, keep becoming.”

Rachel Arocho, associate professor of Family Science at Utah Valley University and USU Uintah Basin alumnus, then addressed the class as the commencement speaker. Arocho opened her speech by speaking on the uncertainty of the future and feelings that comes with it.

“In general, the human psyche doesn’t love not knowing things,” Arocho said. “The feeling of uncertainty, however, is also really important for us. Questioning our own assumptions, and making predictions and hypotheses that we then test, is one of the major ways that we learn.”

Arocho then reminded the graduates that their education had given them several skills in which they could combat uncertainty and its feelings. First, they had learned critical thinking skills and applied them to uncertainty before. Secondly, they have learned the skills to investigate, find answers, and educate themselves. Lastly, they’ve learned the skill of asking for help.

“You have the tools and the smarts to do the best you can, and you’ll continue to build these skills as you continue to face the uncertainties of life, both the good and the bad,” Arocho said. “As I leave you today to launch into your next phase, I hope you can be confident in yourself, even if you’re not quite sure what you’ll be doing in ten years, or next week.”

USU Provost and Executive Vice President Laurens H. Smith then provided a short message and conferred upon the students their degrees. Once the graduates received their diplomas, Ryan Dent, president elect of the USU Alumni Advisory Board, delivered a welcome address.

Operating campuses in Vernal and Roosevelt for more than 50 years, Utah State University Uintah Basin gives students the personalized attention and small class sizes of a small-town college with the resources of a large university, all in the backdrop of the outdoor oasis that is the Uinta Mountains and Ashley National Forest. With degree options ranging from associate to doctorate degrees and more than 125 programs available, as well as access to the renowned Bingham Research Center, USU Uintah Basin offers programs that help fuel local economies and empower individuals and their communities. Learn more at uintahbasin.usu.edu.