I graduated from Colorado College in 2007 and was given the incredible honor of giving the commencement speech to the Class of 2025. It was a culminating moment that pushed me to reflect on the last 18 years – think deeply about how I got to where I am today and talk frankly about where we are headed as a society.
I don’t often give speeches or discuss my views publicly. I tend to put my heart and my passion into the art of documentary film and journalism. But it felt important to share my story and where my views come from. So, this event was a particularly vulnerable experience for me but also incredibly meaningful.
I believe it is important to think deeply about values and the importance of being comfortable with discomfort – recognizing fear and getting closer to it. We live in a time when it’s important to cultivate a relationship with fear.
I hope you enjoy the speech as much as I enjoyed writing and sharing it with CC’s Class of 2025.
CC Press Release:
Independent filmmaker and journalist Mike Shum ’07 delivered the keynote address at the 2025 Commencement Ceremony on Sunday, May 18, at Ed Robson Arena.
A distinguished storyteller known for his powerful documentaries and in-depth journalism, Shum has reported from around the world, covering critical social and political issues. His work has been featured in major media outlets including PBS, The New York Times, and National Geographic, earning him recognition for his compelling and thought-provoking narratives.
“As for serving as CC’s Commencement Speaker, I’m honored and a bit stunned,” says Shum. “It’s an odd feeling returning to Colorado College in this way. I remember my own Commencement speaker in 2007. I remember thinking what it would be like to leave the college and set off on a journey—live a life with adventures, experience, wins, losses, and heartbreak. I feel the full ‘circle-ness’ of this moment. And I hope I can send these students off with some inspiration, some energy, maybe even hope.”
A Sociology major with minors in both Film Studies and African Studies, Shum has built a career bridging investigative journalism and cinematic storytelling. His work often highlights underrepresented voices and sheds light on complex global challenges. As an independent filmmaker, his projects have taken him from conflict zones to communities facing profound change, always with a focus on human resilience and the power of narrative.
Shum has covered stories ranging from the rise of the M23 rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo to a survivor of an ISIS massacre in Iraq, which garnered him his first News & Documentary Emmy nomination for Outstanding Interview. Shum’s work has been recognized with nominations and awards from the NAACP, the National Association of Black Journalists, and the Nieman Foundation’s Worth Bingham Prize.
As a producer and director of photography for the film Hondros, Shum paid tribute to the life and work of war photographer Chris Hondros. Netflix distributed the film following its premiere at the 2017 Tribeca Film Festival. Shum’s collaborations with Al Jazeera’s Witness and PBS’s Frontline have examined a broad range of critical issues including conflict, climate change, and political polarization.
“We are thrilled to welcome Mike Shum back to Colorado College to inspire our graduating class,” says Interim President Manya Whitaker. “As an award-winning documentary filmmaker and journalist, his work—ranging from in-depth reporting on global conflicts to illuminating overlooked human stories—demonstrates the power of a liberal arts education in action. His dedication to humanity, storytelling, and global engagement reflects CC’s commitment to interdisciplinary inquiry and social impact to effect meaningful change in the world.”
Shum’s contributions to the betterment of society and the advancement of CC’s core values earned him the Spirit of Adventure Award from the Alumni Association Council during Homecoming last fall.
Shum served as a Nieman Journalism Fellow at Harvard University where he researched the future of journalism and examining how storytelling can forge public trust and accountability through documentary film.
“I want to talk about the value of fear and making mistakes,” Shum says. “Meaning and art seem to be things that I’m becoming grown to talking about more. It’s something I’ve been exploring at Harvard.”
“It makes me think about what I would tell my younger self,” he continues. “It’s okay if you’re afraid. Those moments when you feel you need to be brave, be brave. But also, I find myself in a place where I’m still a student, not that different from when I was sitting, waiting for my own Commencement to end. That on its own is a funny concept—commencement—beginning. I remember also thinking that I couldn’t wait for that beginning to end.”
The 2025 Commencement Ceremony took place at 8:30 a.m. on May 18.