Gov. Shapiro’s Commencement Address to the Penn Carey Law School | Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA - Today, Governor Josh Shapiro delivered the commencement address at Penn Carey Law School's 2026 commencement ceremony.

See below for the Governor's remarks as prepared for delivery:

To Dean Lee, the leadership at Penn Carey Law, and most importantly, the Class of 2026, thank you for inviting me here today as your commencement speaker.

To the faculty and staff of Penn Carey Law, thank you for everything you have done to educate these fine law students.

To the Admissions Director, I would like to sidebar with you after this ceremony so you can tell me why I wasn't good enough to get into your law school.

To the parents and families and friends who love and support these graduates - thank you for being here and for having their backs every step of the way.

And, of course, to the most important group here today, the Class of 2026…

Congratulations!

You've made it!

Today, you join a distinguished group of leaders who graduated from this prestigious institution, equipped with two powerful tools to make a real difference -

…an exceptional knowledge of the law, and…

…the resolve to apply that knowledge to repair the world around you.

You see, the founder of the University of Pennsylvania, Benjamin Franklin, recognized that the responsibility of building a better Commonwealth - and indeed, a better country - would fall to each of us.

It's literally right in front of you as you walk to class down Ben Franklin Way where you can read some of his most famous aphorisms.

There are so many great quotes, but today I want to focus on just one: Little strokes fell great oaks.

Again, little strokes fell great oaks.

I think what Franklin meant is that the work falls to each of us, and it's not done in one fell swoop.

It requires constant action - constant work. Chipping away at the larger task.

Little strokes.

Franklin believed that in his core.

You see, after Franklin famously signed the new Constitution on the last day of the Constitutional Convention in 1787, a woman stopped him on the cobblestone streets outside of Independence Hall and asked:

"Mr. Franklin, what do we have here? A monarchy or a republic?"

Franklin replied: "A republic, if you can keep it."

Our founders, Franklin especially, understood that the work they began in the halls of the Pennsylvania State House was not the work of a single day or the product of a single document or a single stroke.

It was work that must be taken up by generations of Americans to come and that progress would require lots of actions by lots of people over many years.

Our Founders understood that the citizens of this nation would need to do the hard work of upholding our laws, safeguarding our liberties and expanding freedom.

From the very beginning, those who have studied the law have been equipped with unique tools to do this essential work.

You follow in the footsteps of great Pennsylvanians who have used a Penn Law education to not just keep our republic - but improve it.

Those who came before you have fought for justice, advocated for change and advanced the cause of freedom.

Graduates like Dr. Caroline Burnham Kilgore - class of 1883 - who argued for her right to vote before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court nearly half a century before the ratification of the 19th amendment.

Dr. Kilgore believed that for women to be held equal under the law, they must be able to practice it.

She fought for years to enter the legal profession - and ultimately became the first woman to graduate from Penn Law School, and the first woman admitted to the Pennsylvania Bar.

Graduates like Owen Roberts, class of 1898, who went on to become an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States.

One of the most important cases he heard was Korematsu v. United States - in which, sadly the Court ruled that internment camps created here on American soil during World War II were legal.

But it is Justice Roberts' dissent that is still remembered to this day - and worth a read, perhaps, by the current Administration in Washington.

"I dissent," your fellow Penn alum wrote, "because I think the indisputable facts exhibit a clear violation of Constitutional rights. This is not a case of keeping people off the streets at night… it is the case of convicting a citizen as a punishment for not submitting to imprisonment in a concentration camp, based on his ancestry, and solely because of his ancestry, without evidence."

Justice Roberts knew that in our country, constitutional rights must supersede temporary political considerations.

Graduates like Raymond Pace Alexander, class of 1920, who represented Black clients challenging racial discrimination and segregation in public accommodations - and worked on the landmark civil rights case Brown v. Board of Education ushering in a new era of equality.

And recent graduates like those whose work on Whitewood v. Wolf in 2014 led to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court overturning the state ban on same-sex marriage.

Whether they graduated a century ago or just last year, Penn graduates have heeded Franklin's words.

Little strokes.

Now, that work falls to each of you.

With this degree that you will receive today, you have a role in interpreting, challenging, writing, and upholding the laws of this Commonwealth and this country - whether your job takes you into a boardroom, a courtroom, or some other place of purpose.

And you are uniquely well-equipped for the task with the education you received here at Penn.

Less than half of one percent of adults in this country have a law degree.

The education you received here teaches you more than just knowledge of the law - you learn how to use the law to make a difference.

Case in point, Penn Carey Law was the first law school in the country to require students to complete pro bono service and your class performed over 30,000 hours of pro bono work this year alone.

Members of this class used their knowledge of the law to help Pennsylvanians apply for the tax refunds they're eligible for and receive thousands of dollars that they can use to support themselves and their families.

You helped veterans access the benefits they've earned through their service…

…and you enabled those who have paid their debt to society to get a clean slate and fresh start, so they can find housing, access education, and land a job.

Beyond that, members of the Class of 2026 helped convene a conversation last month about how we can combat violence against women here in the United States and abroad.

And two of you - Rachel Totz and Charlie Brogdon-Tent - even worked in the Governor's Office, helping me craft health care policy and tackle pressing issues around AI.

As Members of the Class of 2026, you have already begun to leave your mark even before you walk across this stage today - because you were taught to understand the importance of using your education to make a difference.

Be open to those moments in life where there is an opportunity to step in, seize the moment and make change.

It's part of your DNA as Penn Carey Law graduates.

No matter where your path takes you, remember the lessons you learned here - and hold tightly to the values your education has instilled in you.

Because those same values have grounded generations of Pennsylvanians and Americans for centuries.

When William Penn arrived on the banks of the Delaware River in 1682 in what is now Chester, Pennsylvania aboard a ship named "Welcome," he set out to build a home that would be welcoming for all.

A place defined by the ideals of tolerance, understanding, and the freedom to worship as you wish.

A place where citizens would peacefully resolve their disagreements and work together despite our differences.

That's another Pennsylvania tradition that you uphold every day at Penn Carey Law.

The culture of collegiality that exists here - a culture that teaches you to work together. To explore new perspectives. And to respect our differences.

Our legal system is designed to be adversarial. To test the best arguments of one side against another.

In a few months, you might find yourselves on opposite sides of a case from your classmate.

Soon, you might even be arguing on opposite sides of a courtroom.

But remember what you learned here.

Because in this moment when so many want to stoke division - on social media and on our screens - stay true to that idea that there is more that unites us than divides us, even when we have a difference of opinion or a client with a different perspective.

We are descendants of William Penn's promise and Ben Franklin's foundation, and we bear the responsibility to carry it forward and continue that work to find ways to appeal to our better angels, instead of succumbing to our worst impulses.

The solution for curing the divisions of America is to refuse to become a part of them.

To refuse to use your special skills as lawyers to perpetuate the chaos, cruelty, and corruption that defines much of our American political system right now.

And instead use your talents to cure those ills.

As graduates of this law school, you now have the power to advance the cause of justice.

To hold the powerful to account.

To stand up for those who've been wronged.

That is work I practice everyday as Governor, alongside two of your fellow alums, Jacob Boyer, my Deputy General Counsel, and Akbar Hossain, my Secretary of Policy and Planning.

We've used the law to put a stop to the whitewashing of our history at Independence Hall.

We've used the law to reclaim billions of dollars in federal funding owed to the good people of Pennsylvania that the Trump Administration tried to unlawfully withhold.

We've used the law to stand up to the conspiracy theorists in Washington and those who want to restrict our freedoms to ensure that here in Pennsylvania, women can make decisions over their own bodies, and parents can make decisions about the vaccines their kids receive.

And we've used the law to protect your most valuable right as an American - the right to vote.

For generations, our legal system has shaped American democracy, grounded in the values passed down from Penn, Franklin, and the Founders.

And today, even in these tumultuous times, we're proving that the law can still be a force for good.

So as you embark on your path forward from Penn, use the adversarial nature of the law to advance the cause of justice, without becoming adversarial yourself.

Stand up to injustice.

Call out - respectfully - the wrongs you see in the world and be a voice for those who can't make theirs heard.

You don't have to wait or leave this work to someone else.

This power, this purpose - it is yours now. Thanks to your degree from Penn Carey Law.

And with that power, comes the responsibility to use it wisely and justly to address the most pressing challenges of our times.

To protect workers rights and immigrant rights, women's rights and voting rights.

To combat hatred and bigotry in all forms and give voice to the tolerant, not the angry.

This class is graduating at a unique time in our nation's history - 250 years since our founding.

This moment encourages us to look back and reflect on how far we've come, and how much farther we have to go.

As you walk across this stage and receive this diploma, shake the hand of the Dean, spot your family in the crowd and smile towards them…

I hope you'll spend just a brief second thinking of the Penn graduates who came before you.

The contributions they've made.

The challenges and adversity they had to overcome…

And the trails they blazed for you to follow.

But as you walk off stage with your diploma in hand and a sense of pride in all you accomplished, I hope you also look forward, proud of all you have done to earn this degree, resolved to continue the work that those who came before you began.

To uphold our system of justice.

To keep our republic and perfect our union.

You have the unique tools to do that work.

And I can't wait to see what you will accomplish.

We are all depending on you.

Congratulations, Class of 2026!