![\"\"](\"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2025\/06\/sami-anthony-graduation-portrait-1500x844-1-1024x576-1.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nBut, right after that, came this mix of excitement and nervous energy. Not just about what\u2019s next, but about getting to take everything I\u2019ve learned and actually use it out in the real world. It\u2019s a wild feeling, realizing the late nights and study sessions are behind you, but the real work is just getting started. What I\u2019ll remember most from these years aren\u2019t the grades or exams. It\u2019s the conversations with friends, mentors, and professors that made me see things differently. I learned that growth doesn\u2019t come from knowing all the answers. It comes from staying curious, open, and willing to show up even when you\u2019re unsure. <\/p>\n\n\n\n As I move forward, I\u2019m trying to carry that lesson with me. Success doesn\u2019t have to look a certain way. It\u2019s okay not to have it all figured out. What matters most is how we treat others, how we collaborate, and how we stay open to becoming more than we thought possible. I\u2019m so thankful for everyone in this program. Classmates, scholarship donors, alumni, supervisors, faculty, and staff all helped create a space where I could grow. As I start my next chapter as a Process Engineer at Smurfit Westrock, I hope to pass along the same kind words and thoughtful advice that made such a difference for me. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Congratulations to the class of 2025!<\/strong><\/em> by: Sami Anthony, PSE '25<\/p>\n\n\n\n When I first arrived at NC State, I was full of questions. I didn\u2019t have a grand plan, and I certainly didn\u2019t think I\u2019d end up in Paper Science & Engineering. I had doubts about whether I could \u201cmake it\u201d in an unfamiliar space. What I didn\u2019t know then was that college isn\u2019t about fitting into mold, but rather about realizing that you never needed one in the first place. Walking across the stage, I felt like I could take a deep breath. It was this huge wave of relief and pride in my achievement. <\/p>\n\n\n\n But, right after that, came this mix of excitement and nervous energy. Not just about what\u2019s next, but about getting to take everything I\u2019ve learned and actually use it out in the real world. It\u2019s a wild feeling, realizing the late nights and study sessions are behind you, but the real work is just getting started. What I\u2019ll remember most from these years aren\u2019t the grades or exams. It\u2019s the conversations with friends, mentors, and professors that made me see things differently. I learned that growth doesn\u2019t come from knowing all the answers. It comes from staying curious, open, and willing to show up even when you\u2019re unsure. <\/p>\n\n\n\n As I move forward, I\u2019m trying to carry that lesson with me. Success doesn\u2019t have to look a certain way. It\u2019s okay not to have it all figured out. What matters most is how we treat others, how we collaborate, and how we stay open to becoming more than we thought possible. I\u2019m so thankful for everyone in this program. Classmates, scholarship donors, alumni, supervisors, faculty, and staff all helped create a space where I could grow. As I start my next chapter as a Process Engineer at Smurfit Westrock, I hope to pass along the same kind words and thoughtful advice that made such a difference for me. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Congratulations to the class of 2025!<\/strong><\/em> by: Sami Anthony, PSE ’25 When I first arrived at NC State, I was full of questions. I didn\u2019t have a grand plan, and I certainly didn\u2019t think I\u2019d end…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":274,"featured_media":25464,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"source":"","ncst_custom_author":"","ncst_show_custom_author":false,"ncst_dynamicHeaderBlockName":"","ncst_dynamicHeaderData":"","ncst_content_audit_freq":"","ncst_content_audit_date":"","ncst_content_audit_display":false,"ncst_backToTopFlag":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[55,72,39,27],"tags":[226,160],"class_list":["post-25463","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-alumni","category-forest-biomaterials-newsletter","category-paper-science-and-engineering","category-pse-newsletter","tag-graduation-2","tag-pse"],"displayCategory":null,"acf":{"ncst_posts_meta_modified_date":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25463","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/274"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25463"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25463\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25468,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25463\/revisions\/25468"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/25464"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25463"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25463"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25463"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2025\/06\/NCSU-Table-1-1024x768.jpg\")
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