Southern Maine Community College celebrated student success last month at our 71st commencement, where we awarded a record number of degrees and certificates to the largest graduating class in SMCC history.

Commencement is a time to salute our graduates’ achievements and success during their time at SMCC. But graduation is not an end point. It is a launching pad for our graduates as they move forward to bright futures entering the workforce or continuing their education at fouryear institutions.

When Chloe Creighton first arrived at SMCC’s Midcoast Campus in Brunswick in the fall of 2015, she was shy and unsure of herself. Fresh out of high school, she had just moved with her family to Topsham from a small town on the outer end of Long Island in New York. She didn’t know a soul.

But now she’s brimming with confidence after earning her degree in Liberal Studies. She is moving back to New York and plans to earn a bachelor’s degree in human services at St. Joseph’s College New York. She later hopes to earn a master’s before working professionally in the human services field helping people.

Chloe credits the Midcoast Campus’ faculty, staff and welcoming environment with bringing her out of her shell and encouraging her to explore her interests.

“After I came to SMCC and talked to people and took classes, I was able to be guided to where I am now,” she says. “It’s like I’ve gotten a big weight off my chest because now I know what I want to do in life and I’m going to do it. It makes me very happy.”

There were 1,120 graduates in the SMCC Class of 2018. They came from all 16 Maine counties and 18 other states, as far away as California, Arizona, Texas and Florida. We had graduates from 22 countries outside of the United States.

Many of our graduates are entering the workforce, with skills that will go a long way at hospitals and medical facilities, law enforcement agencies, manufacturing companies, creative agencies, restaurants and numerous other companies and organizations.

Others are continuing their education at public and private institutions in Maine, across New England and elsewhere. Maddy Dumont, another of our Midcoast graduates, is transferring to the University of New England, where she will be enrolled in the Health, Wellness and Occupational Studies program. In time she intends to also earn a master’s degree as part of her journey to become an occupational therapist.

Maddy says thanks to SMCC, she now has goals to aim for and is confident of a bright future ahead of her. “SMCC,” she says, “was like a starting point where I could figure out what I wanted to do.”

Chloe and Maddy became good friends while at SMCC. Chloe says that they have joked that their only regret is that their time at SMCC was too short.

“We wished we could get our bachelor’s degrees there,” she said. “We love SMCC.”

Ron Cantor is ths president of Southern Maine Community College.