Student Commencement Address by Jackson Tyler Price ’26

These are the student remarks delivered by Jackson Tyler Price ’26 at the 2026 Furman University Commencement ceremony.

When people describe Furman, they often talk about how quickly four years pass. And they’re not wrong. But Furman has taught me that each phase of life is much less like a sprint… and much more like the distance races this university has become famous for.

In distance running, success rarely comes from speed alone. It comes from patience, rhythm, and the people who run alongside you. Looking back, my time at Furman followed that same pattern – moments of momentum, moments where I was forced to slow down, and moments where this community carried me forward when I could not do it alone.

Jackson Price ’26 gave the student address at Furman University’s 2026 commencement ceremony on May 9. Photo by Nathan Gray, Furman University.

I first understood the power of the Furman community during my freshman year as a member of the Men’s Soccer team. In the spring of 2023, we traveled to the United Kingdom. Several of our alumni financed the trip and went with us. Watching them leave their families and support us wholeheartedly, taught me two things. First, that being part of Furman means becoming part of something that stretches far beyond four years. And second, that the alumni network is more than just a list of names – it’s a community that heavily invests in those who come after them.

The following spring, I walked onto the track team. Something I never imagined myself doing. But training alongside one of the nation’s elite running programs pushed me to reconsider what I believed possible. A mindset shift that would only benefit my Furman experience.

After my sophomore year, I traveled to Italy for the Slow Food MayX program. That experience gave me new friendships and changed my relationship with food, teaching my classmates and I to slow down and see food as something intentional. Something that is connected to both community and well-being.

Later that year, in September, we found out how Furman could shape us in quieter moments. When Hurricane Helene knocked out power across campus we cooked on charcoal grills, took cold showers and ate dinner in the dark. For a few nights, the pace of college life slowed and allowed us to simply be present with one another.

Then came October 2024. A season that tested everything I thought I knew about resilience.

I tore my ACL during one of our away games. Overnight, I went from playing the sport I love to relearning how to walk. It was the lowest point of my time here, but it revealed the clearest example of how special this community is. Teammates, athletic trainers, professors, friends, and students I had never previously encountered offered a helping hand. Many of those people are sitting in front of me today. And as a result of their kindness, I was able to rebuild not just my knee, but my confidence and identity as well.

Slowing down in my recovery only created space for new growth.

In March 2025, I began working with the Hill Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship to develop the idea that became GoldRush Energy, an all-natural supplement inspired by that Slow Food trip. One month later, I stood on stage and won the Rinker Paladin Pitch. And soon after that, Furman helped me turn my idea into a real company.

Finally, this past fall, I made it back onto the field and became part of the most decorated soccer team this university has ever produced. As we danced all the way to the Final Four, I watched waves of purple pour into stadiums, both home and away, in support of the Paladins.

Which reminded me that above all, Furman gave us the people who make this place feel like home. It’s given us relationships that will last far beyond this campus.

There’s a saying I love which says: “If you want to go fast, go alone. But if you want to go far, go together.” And together, we have gone far. We were here when our men’s basketball team won a March Madness game. We were here when the famous Blackwell Hall was torn down. And we were here when snow covered Furman in a way most of us had never seen before. It’s moments like these which remind us that we did not just attend this university at the same time. We experienced it together.

And if Furman has taught me anything, it is that the most important races are not about how fast you start, but about how you sustain effort, respond to setbacks, and rely on the people around you.

Furman has prepared us for the races that lie ahead.

It has shown us that slowing down is not falling behind. Rather, slowing down is what allows us to grow, connect, and discover who we are becoming.

And as we leave this campus, we carry more than a degree. We carry the relationships, the resilience and the perspective Furman has given us – tools that will guide us long after today.

Thank you.

Commencement >>