Third time's the charm: Rob Hale gives UMass-Boston grads $1,000 each
BOSTON − South Shore billionaire Rob Hale took his tried-and-true gift for new college graduates to a new school last week: the University of Massachusetts-Boston.
Hale, who owns Quincy-based Granite Telecommunications, spoke at the college's Wednesday commencement ceremony, where he gave each undergraduate student $1,000 as a parting gift − $500 to keep for themselves and $500 to give to someone else in need. Hale started the tradition at Quincy College in 2021 and repeated it in 2022 at Roxbury Community College.
Hale said he had several pieces of advice for the graduates, learned from his own "checkered history": Don't be afraid of failure, take chances, live as a leader and "give a little more than you get."
"I have seen failure, face to face," he told graduates. "It stings. It hurts. It didn't kill me. ... Don't let the fear define you. Defy it."
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After speeches, songs and processionals, just before graduates were set to walk across the stage, Hale interrupted Chancellor Marcelo Suarez-Orozco to announce his gift to an eruption of cheers, applause and chants.
“These are turbulent times. You guys have survived, you have prospered, you are to be celebrated,” Hale said.
U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren also spoke at the ceremony, where she told students to "rub it all over yourself, roll around in it and enjoy every minute."
"Surely you face more challenges than most any graduating class in history. And yet, I’m here today to counsel: Choose hope," she said. "In fact, I’m here today to tell you that I choose hope. That I am, in fact, hopeful."
UMass-Boston graduated more than 3,646 students in the Class of 2023 − 2,518 undergraduates, 998 graduate students and 130 doctoral students.
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Hale earlier this year was named by Forbes magazine as one of the world's top billionaires with an estimated net worth of $5 billion. As of Friday, he was ranked as the 550th richest person in the world on a list that changes daily. When he was named to the 2022 list, he was ranked 999th.
Hale joined The Forbes 400 list in the fall of 2022, something he said came about after the magazine featured the commencement speech he gave at Quincy College. He was featured by Forbes last fall for his and his wife's promise to donate $1 million each week to local nonprofits committed to doing good on the South Shore and beyond. The project led to a Forbes cover story in October.
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This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Rob Hale of Granite Telecommunications gives UMass-Boston grads $1,000
