Penn State Behrend's Spring 2025 Commencement was held Friday, May 9, at Erie Insurance Arena.
Graduates and their guests heard addresses by Dr. Kenneth Louie, associate professor of economics and director of the Economic Research Institute of Erie, and Tim NeCastro, president and CEO of Erie Insurance. The texts of the commencement addresses are below.
See the Spring 2025 Commencement Program
The Enduring Lessons I Have Learned
Dr. Kenneth Louie
Chancellor Ford, Vice Chancellor Rhoades, Vice Chancellor Filbeck, Mr. NeCastro, distinguished guests, colleagues, and especially the Class of 2025 and your families, I am very honored to speak to all of you tonight.
When Dr. Filbeck invited me to give the commencement address, I felt very apprehensive at first.
What could I possibly say to our graduating class and to their families that would be wise, inspiring, and memorable, and that had not already been spoken by someone else at another commencement ceremony?
What more could I possibly add to this immense reservoir of wisdom?
So, like any respectable academic, I Googled “Commencement Speeches” and began to read countless addresses that had been delivered at colleges and universities across the country, including the excellent speeches given by my colleagues and other special guests right here at previous Behrend commencements.
In my research on commencement addresses, I came to realize that, in addition to being brief, virtually all of them included three basic components, what you might call “the three fundamental pillars of a good commencement speech.”
First, any good commencement address must have a personal component, drawn from some aspect of the speaker’s own life experience.
Second, it must include some lighthearted humor.
And third, it must end with some profound and inspiring words of wisdom.
So that’s what I thought I would have to do to deliver a good speech, and therefore I made sure my address tonight contained all three elements. In doing so, I hope to convey to the Class of 2025 some of the most important and enduring life lessons that I have learned.
First, the personal. I grew up in a family of five children with loving and hard-working parents. As the youngest child, I learned early on that I had to compete for attention and recognition.
One of the first and most enduring lessons my parents taught my siblings and me is that, when you feel ignored and unnoticed, you should never feel discouraged. Instead, through your words and through your deeds, always try to show others that you are worthy of recognition and attention.
It wasn’t until years later, when I studied history and philosophy in college, that I learned this is an enduring lesson taught in the Analects of Confucius, which was compiled more than two millennia ago.
I relate this personal story because, many times throughout your life, you will likely encounter occasions when you feel that, despite all you have done, despite how hard you have worked, despite how many personal sacrifices you have made, that you are still not receiving the attention and recognition that you think you deserve.
In those moments of quiet loneliness and solitude, I hope you will reflect on what my mom and dad (and of course, what Confucius) admonished us to do: “Do not worry that you are not noticed; seek instead to be worthy of distinction.”
So much for the personal, now on to some lighthearted humor.
In my research on commencement addresses, I also learned that Kermit the Frog had been invited to give the commencement address this year at the University of Maryland.
When I dug a little deeper, I discovered that, in fact, Kermit had given another commencement address back in 1996. Moreover, I learned that, back then, Kermit had been awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Amphibious Letters.
Given his status as one of the most loveable creatures on our planet, I thought I would share with you another enduring lesson I have learned, and which Kermit articulated so eloquently in his 1996 speech.
Now, of course, Kermit gave it in frog-speak, which went something like this: “Ribbit-ribbit-ribbit.”
So, I’ll have to translate and paraphrase what Kermit said, which was: “Always strive for success and always keep smiling … even when you’re knee-deep in the sticky muck of life.” Truly profound!
Finally, onward to some inspiring words of wisdom. I don’t remember everything that happened at my own commencement when I graduated from college. In fact, I remember in much more vivid detail my high school graduation.
But one thing I do remember very well from my college commencement and which I reflect upon whenever I feel disheartened by the harshness and unruliness of the world around me, are the words from the motto of my alma mater.
Although it is based on a passage from the Bible, I think the words really transcend religion and appeal to our human capacity for goodness. So, I want to leave you with those words of wisdom that inspired me as a young college graduate, and which continue to do so today. I hope they will also provide inspiration for you:
Whatsoever things are true,
Whatsoever things are honest,
Whatsoever things are just,
Whatsoever things are pure,
Whatsoever things are lovely,
Whatsoever things are of good report;
If there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.
Thank you, hearty congratulations to the Class of 2025, and Godspeed on the way to all your future achievements!
Dr. Kenneth Louie is an associate professor of economics and director of the Economic Research Institute of Erie at Penn State Behrend.
Making Meatballs
Tim NeCastro
Good evening, Penn State Behrend leaders, trustees, faculty and staff—family and friends—and of course, the graduates of the class of 2025.
It’s truly an honor to be a part of this very special day and incredible milestone in your lives.
I’d like to thank you for spending the next few minutes with me as I share some reflections and words of advice for our graduates.
As the CEO of a Fortune 500 company, I’m often asked how I got to where I am today. It’s usually from younger employees or interns at Erie Insurance. Not surprisingly, they want to know how they might become a CEO one day, too.
I think a lot of them expect me to say that this was always my plan, and that I had a clear path to get here. But, that’s not the case.
When I graduated from college back in the ’80s, I never dreamed of becoming a CEO. To be honest, I’m not even sure I had a dream then. I just wanted to finish school and find a good job.
But as I look back now, it’s easy for me to see what did actually bring me here. And that’s what I’m going to share with you today.
I grew up right here in Erie as part of a large Italian family. My father passed away when I was 7 and my Mom raised us—six kids in all—by herself. We didn’t have much money, but we had a very strong support system.
And probably the most influential person for me was my mom’s brother, Uncle Joe. He helped us out a lot after my father died.
One day, my mom and I stopped by to visit Uncle Joe at his office.
It was the first time I had been there. … It had a carpet you could sink right into, and Uncle Joe was sitting behind a big wooden desk.
I was impressed.
So, I asked him: "What do you do to get this nice office and make a lot of money?"
Uncle Joe stood up, walked around his desk, and looked me in the eyes.
“Timmy,” he said, shaking his head: “You’re thinking about this all wrong.
“You should do what you love. … If you do what you love, you will do it really well—and you’ll make plenty of money.
“Don’t get that backwards.”
So, a few years later, I went to college—also here in Erie at Gannon University—for something I thought I would love: Psychology. I chose it because I wanted a career where I could help people.
Then, in my junior year, I discovered that virtually all psych majors end up in grad school. Well, I didn’t want to go to grad school. I was anxious to get out into the workforce. But, I also wasn’t sure where I did want to go.
So I went back to Uncle Joe. … And, by then, I knew that he was an accountant.
He said to me, “Tim, you should think about accounting. We have good accounting genes in our family—Uncle Frank, your brother, Joe, your cousin Lucia. All CPAs.
“Besides, it’s a career where you can really help people,” he said, “by taking big problems off their shoulders.”
So, I changed my major to accounting—and after graduation, I went to work for a “big 8” accounting firm. And what did I discover? I loved it. I was good at it. And yes, I was still able to help people by taking big problems off their shoulders.
But I never would have found that path without the close connection I had with Uncle Joe. And more importantly, without listening to his advice.
And that’s the first lesson I’d like to share: Lean on—and learn from—the mentors in your life.
I know what some of you may be thinking …
I’m getting ready to walk out of here today with a college degree. I’m an intelligent person. I’ve done and experienced a lot of things already in my life. And I know what I want to do and how to do it.
But believe me, there are people out there who have experienced more than you have. Some you know, others you don’t YET know. Some of them are probably sitting in the room with you today.
They’ve tried and failed.
They’ve tried and succeeded.
They’ve felt heartbreak, and they’ve experienced triumphs.
And they want to share what they’ve learned with you.
As you progress through life, you’ll build even more connections, with even more people with advice to share. These mentors are important people to have in your corner. They might even give you guidance that could change the course of your life and career.
Because believe me, there will be times when plans change and you need that guidance.
My mom never planned to be a widow or a single mother. But life threw her a curveball when my father passed.
When faced with unplanned—and unimaginable—circumstances, she kept going. And she never lost sight of her values.
Mom worked hard – sometimes holding down two, and even three jobs. She made sure we worked hard, too – by helping out around the house and getting our own jobs as soon as we were old enough. And, she made sure we went with her to St. Paul’s Church every Sunday.
Mom did what she had to do to raise the six of us in a stable, loving household.
It’s impossible to know if anything would have turned out differently had my father been around to help raise us. But what I do know is that how my mom responded to that change in her life made all the difference in ours.
And that’s my second piece of advice: Hold on to your values, not your plans.
I had my own change of plans, professionally, nearly three decades into my career.
I was working at Erie Insurance and had been the controller, in charge of the company’s finances, for 11 years. My next and ultimate move, or so I thought, was to be CFO, chief financial officer.
My plans changed in a single afternoon. The company president and CEO came to me about a job leading our customer service operations. It was an area I knew little about – totally off my radar. But he insisted that it would be a good move for me and that I was the right person for the job. And in reality, it wasn’t as much of an ask as it was an order.
At first, I was upset. I was nervous. I felt like my plans had been pulled out from under me.
But I dug in and drew from what was important to me and what I was good at: working with people.
Looking back, it was an invaluable opportunity -- a chance to gain new experience and understanding. And to share my own expertise in finance with an important operations area.
The experience opened my eyes other ways too. Two years later, a position leading sales for ERIE’s western territory opened up. Once again, I was visited by our CEO who “suggested” I “consider” taking the role. I learned from the Customer service job that I could adapt and change, but would carry my values with me wherever I go. Well, I did “consider” the new role and am happy to say it worked out pretty well.
Through that role, I learned a completely new part of our business and got to know people I never would have otherwise.
Those opportunities gave me a breadth of experience I wouldn’t have had if I had stuck to my plans. And the experiences I gained are what prepared me to become CEO.
Many of you have plans for what comes next. As a father of five grown children, I know your parents hope you have plan. But the reality is those plans will change.
What’s important is that you view changes as opportunities, not as setbacks. And when faced with changes, hold true to your values --- to who you are and what matters to you.
The last lesson I’d like to leave you with is this: Make meatballs.
As a kid, I spent a lot of days at my grandmother’s kitchen table, in the heart of Erie’s Little Italy neighborhood, often making meatballs. You don’t have to think too hard while you’re rolling meatballs.
So while we were busy with our hands, we would have conversations. And believe me, my grandmother, mother and aunts had A LOT of stories about childhood and Little Italy. These are some of my fondest memories. And I learned that I love to cook!
They taught me not only how to make a perfect meatball, but through their stories, they also taught me a lot about life. The values and lessons I learned at that kitchen table have stuck with me: The value of sharing and connecting. The value of relationships. And of course, the value of doing something worthwhile that you enjoy.
For the past 25 years, using what I learned, I have made meatballs for the St. Paul’s Italian Festival every August. This year, we will make 14,000 of them. The festival has supported parish operations for the past 40 years.
It was something I could do to help my parish help those in need in my old neighborhood. Giving back and helping others became very important to me as my career progressed. And the festival has been a great way to connect family and friends.
In my role as CEO, I have learned more fully of the needs of our community. And have broadened my attention well beyond the meatballs.
Erie Insurance turned 100 years old just last month.
At ERIE, people and relationships are paramount and giving back to others is at our core.
When I was chosen to be CEO nearly 9 years ago, our Chairman of the Board made it clear to me that running the business was only part of the job. The other part was about bringing those values to life in everything we do; building connections with Employees, Agents, Customers AND those in our community; we do this by investing in our hometown, and our namesake.
To effectively engage with the community, we have focused on building relationships with local, state and national government officials, business leaders from different industries, colleges and universities, investors and philanthropic leaders. But beyond just building relationships we’ve worked to bring people together. Our community needed help, and I knew that working together, building coalitions, was the only way to make things happen in Erie.
Today, I’m proud to say that downtown Erie has undergone a dramatic transformation over the past decade. Old, dilapidated buildings have been completely renovated. Dozens of new businesses have moved in. Hundreds of new jobs have been created. And it’s all because people who care about this community came together to do something worthwhile.
The relationships I’ve built and the work I’ve done in the community over the past decade are also how I discovered my true calling and passion.
I’ve always known that I was a people person, and I’ve always believed in giving back. But when I dug deeper into that, I discovered that building connections and giving my time and talents to my community is what I truly love to do.
So when I tell you to make meatballs, what I mean is this: Find opportunities to make connections with people while doing something worthwhile.
Remember that advice I shared earlier from Uncle Joe about doing what you love? Well, it’s still paying off for me. And it can pay off for you, too.
Think about what matters to you – and do it. If you don’t find it in your profession, look for it elsewhere. If you like animals, volunteer for a local shelter. If you like soccer, join a soccer club. Just do something that fulfills you. Do something that helps you make connections with others. And if you can give back to your community while you’re doing it, even better.
Through that, you just might discover what you truly love.
So, there you have it. That’s my story. And this is my advice:
Lean on—and learn from—the mentors in your life.
Hold on to your values, not your plans.
And finally, connect with others to make a difference. Share your success. Make meatballs!!
Congratulations to the graduates and best wishes for a bright and successful future! Thank you!
Tim NeCastro is president and CEO of Erie Insurance, an auto, home, business, and life insurance company based in Erie.