Sisters from Miami University classes of 2020 and 2021 celebrate commencement together  

Miami President Gregory Crawford tells graduates: "Your unwavering courage kept you on the path that led to this moment"

By Margo Kissell, university news and communications

Sam Baird adjusts Hannah's cap before the Class of 2020's in-person commencement ceremony Thursday in Yager Stadium (photo by Scott Kissell).

Sisters Hannah and Sam Baird are both celebrating commencement at Miami University this week — Hannah with the Class of 2020 and Sam with the Class of 2021. 

“It absolutely makes it more special,” said Hannah, who earned a bachelor’s degree in education last May when that graduation ceremony was held virtually because of the pandemic. 

This year’s commencement ceremonies are in-person at Yager Stadium — with Hannah’s ceremony held Thursday night and Sam’s on Friday afternoon.  

“We still have our individual days, which is nice so it still feels like ‘our day.’ As a family, we can celebrate together instead of apart,” Hannah said.  

Sam, who is majoring in communication design with a minor in photography, said she didn’t expect to have an in-person ceremony, so she was thrilled when she received the Miami email announcing the news. The sisters, who are from Hamilton, are 17 months apart in age. They grew up doing a lot together, so it seems fitting that they are celebrating this together.  

“I know she worked hard and deserves a ceremony, too,” Sam said.  

Celebrating the Class of 2020

Miami President Gregory Crawford said at Thursday night's ceremony that it was Miami officials’ great pleasure to celebrate the accomplishments of the Class of 2020. 

“You have experienced college in a way that no class before has known — and likely, no class will experience again,” he said.

“You were here last year for the abrupt transition to remote learning with its chaos and novelty,” he said. “Despite uncertainty — you have been patient, flexible and triumphant during an unprecedented time. Your unwavering courage kept you on the path that led to this moment, and we admire your perseverance and fortitude.”   

Commencement speaker Carolyn Jefferson-Jenkins — a 1974 Western College for Women graduate — told members of the Class of 2020 who returned to Yager Stadium that they will find reassurance in the “legacy of love, honor, learn” for years to come.  

“I am forever tied to Oxford, Ohio, committed to following my passion and sense of purpose as I persevere to make this world a better place,” said Jefferson-Jenkins, who was elected as the 15th national president of the League of Women Voters in 1998, serving two terms. She was the first woman of color to be elected president.  

“The Miami experience has empowered you to seek your passion and purpose. It has instilled in you a sense of global responsibility,” she said. “It has allowed you to succeed and to fail, to deal with the challenges of a global pandemic, remote learning, virtual events, a reckoning with social and racial injustice.”  

“This commencement is a testament to the fact that despite any adversity, you have risen to the occasion with purpose and intention.”  

Sam Baird, a member of the Ohio Army National Guard

Sam Baird

Sam said taking classes during the pandemic “was like getting a free trial period for a different learning style.” She loved certain aspects of virtual classes, such as having everything for all of her classes in one place.

 “And then there are some aspects that are more challenging, like having a lot more distractions around me,” she said, “so learning how to separate and designate my time has been a necessary adaptation.”  

Sam joined the National Guard in September 2018 to pay her college tuition and because she developed a general interest in the military after her brother served in the Navy.  

“I feel like I'm getting the taste of military life that I craved,” she said, “and I still get to have my own life and pursue a career that I love.”  

Immediately after graduation, she will leave for six weeks of annual training in Louisiana with her National Guard unit, then plans to find a graphic design job in the Cincinnati area.  

Hannah Baird returns to Miami to pursue master’s

Hannah will be returning to Miami this summer to pursue her master of arts in teaching.   She has spent the past year teaching ninth-grade math for Hamilton City Schools and said she loves her job, especially since she is back teaching fulltime and in-person with all of her students.

“Teaching during the pandemic has had its challenges. When we started, our classes were split in half and we only saw our students two days a week,” she said. “I so badly wanted to have all of my students in one room!”