This article is adapted from remarks Bost delivered to the Class of 2030 during Fall Convocation 2026.
Hannah Bost ’27, WCGA President
When I arrived at Wilson, I thought college was pretty simple: go to class, study hard, make friends, earn a degree, and graduate. What I didn’t realize was that Wilson would become so much more than that. It became a place where I learned that my voice mattered.
One of the things I love most about Wilson is that students aren’t just along for the ride. We help steer it. Through my work with the Wilson College Government Association, I’ve had the opportunity to work alongside faculty, administrators, and college leadership. What surprised me most wasn’t that students had a seat at the table. It was that people genuinely listened. Questions were asked. Ideas were challenged. Suggestions were taken seriously, and those conversations often became real change.
Over the past few years, we’ve seen campus spaces transformed, traditions strengthened, and new ideas become reality. Those changes happened because students spoke up and cared enough to make Wilson better for the people who would come after them.
To me, that’s the Wilson spirit. It’s more than attending events or wearing blue and white. It’s believing this place can be better than it was yesterday. It’s looking around campus and asking, “How can I leave this place better than I found it?”
That’s exactly what the classes before mine did for us. They invested in this community, and we benefit from their efforts every day.
So instead of asking yourself what Wilson is going to give you over the next four years, ask yourself a different question: What will Wilson become because I was here?
And before I leave you with one final thought, I have to warn you about something. People are going to tell you not to blink. Three years later, I understand exactly what they meant.
One day, sooner than you think, you’ll look back and realize Wilson wasn’t just the place where you earned a degree. It was a place that became better because you were part of it.
