Bay College is excited to announce the 2026 Commencement Speaker Competition. The winner of this competition will deliver their speech to the graduates and guests of Bay College’s 2026 Commencement Ceremony. All entries must be submitted by April 2nd.
To enter, a Bay College student must submit their speech in document form by April 2nd to Dr. Renee Strom, Arts & Letters faculty member, via email: renee.strom@baycollege.edu. Each entry must include the student’s full name, contact email, and telephone number. All entrants must be eligible to graduate by Summer 2026 and have applied for graduation. All speeches should be four to five minutes long when read aloud and should specifically address the new Bay College graduates. It is also expected that all speeches be considerate and responsive to the sensitivities of general audiences.
Once all submissions have been considered, finalists will be contacted by Dr. Strom to deliver their speech(es) to the Commencement Speaker Committee on April 14th.
The winner of the competition will receive $100 and will deliver the speech at the graduation ceremony on May 9th. The second-place winner will receive $50.
Questions regarding the competition can be directed to Dr. Renee Strom via p: (906)217-4131 or e: renee.strom@baycollege.edu.
About Bay College
Bay College is the community’s college with a mission of: Student Success, Community Success, and Culture of Success. Bay is devoted to each individual’s achievement in the classroom, on-campus, online, in the community and into the workforce by providing career certificates, associate degrees, transferable university credits, industry certifications, trainings, and professional development programs which develop skillsets, enrich individuals, and advance careers. #BayIsTheWay