Secretary McMahon’s Commencement Address for The Apprentice School at Newport News Shipbuilding

Hello, graduates! Thank you for having me today. To the class of 2025-Congratulations! To the parents and families, the mentors and friends, the faculty and staff of this remarkable apprentice school-congratulations to you, too. Today is a celebration of all of you.

And thanks to Liberty Live Church, we're commemorating this event without tunnel traffic or turnstiles. That's what I call a win-win.

We have an extraordinary group here this morning: 128 graduates. Each of you has contributed substantially-not only to your own futures, but to our great nation through the skills you've honed, and the expertise and resilience you've built over these demanding years.

What an honor it is to celebrate you at this pivotal moment-during America's Golden Age and as we approach our nation's 250th birthday.

Ships are the backbone of America's story-without them, this nation would never have been born. If I were addressing graduates of aviation maintenance or satellite manufacturing programs, their fields would matter greatly-but none would share the profound connection to our nation's founding in this Semiquincentennial year quite like you do.

From the first Atlantic crossings to the Pilgrims aboard the Mayflower, ships carried the seeds of self-government to our shores. They linked our colonies, powered trade, and defended against adversaries seeking to rewrite the course of America's destiny. Through the centuries, America's formidable fleet turned tides in war. But it did more. As President William McKinley observed, American ships entering foreign ports bore a symbolism greater than strength-they were "messengers of peace," carrying the values of liberty, equality, and human dignity, and proving what a nation committed to those principles can achieve.

This very yard played a defining role in that legacy. Newport News Shipbuilding alone built nearly half of the Great White Fleet-the first battleships to circle the globe-and a quarter of all U.S. Navy dreadnoughts in the early 20th century, along with the first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier in the world. The hands that build these ships create the enduring handiwork of freedom.

That's the power of shipbuilding-a craft built on accumulated skill and knowledge passed from generation to generation. Someone here today knows that well: Clyde Barden IV, a 27-year veteran of sea trials on Newport News' finest carriers from the USS Harry S. Truman to the USS Gerald R. Ford.

But the sea trials earlier this year for the carrier John F. Kennedy were different - this time, Mr. Barden wasn't alone. Standing beside him on deck was his son, fellow shipbuilder Clyde Barden V, who graduates today. Their story is more than a family milestone-it's a reminder that every graduate here is part of a tradition that spans centuries, carrying forward the expertise and pride that keep America strong.

But you are more than shipbuilders. You are fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, and athletes-and I hear one of you worked at Carlo's Bakery from Cake Boss, proving this might be the first class with someone who is both an expert at piping frosting and pipe fitting.

Few illustrate this better than Stacey Frye, whose versatility and sense of service reflect the ethos of Newport News Shipbuilding. Stacey began her journey here in 2018, stepped away in 2020 to start a family, and returned to the Apprentice School in 2021 while raising her newborn daughter with her husband, a General Foreman at the yard. She excelled academically, completed the Frontline FAST program, and served as part of the Apprentice School Student Association. But she didn't stop there-Stacey dedicated hundreds of hours to community service and has the distinct honor of earning this year's James P. Healy Community Service Award.

Congratulations, Stacey.

They say commencement speeches shouldn't touch policy-but when your work forms the backbone of our nation's security, it's impossible to ignore the bigger picture.

In a time when too many students leave college burdened with debt and degrees that don't deliver, you stand as proof of what higher education can-and should-be: a pathway to both learning and earning. You show that skill, not just a diploma, is what drives opportunity.

Many of you know this truth all too well-coming here with college degrees to gain the applied skills employers value most. Well, take heart, graduates, because workers with associate degrees or skilled trades training now have lower unemployment rates than those with traditional four-year degrees!

This is what the modern American Dream looks like-opening real pathways to a fulfilling life and a purpose beyond yourself. And you, Class of 2025, aren't just stepping into the Golden Age of America-you are building it, proving that accessible training creates meaningful work and that meaningful work strengthens our nation.

Your paths were all different. Clyde's, Stacey's, every graduate's. Yet, like the distinct components of a single vessel, each of you drives the direction and momentum of America's next chapter. Together, you show how vocational training is reclaiming its rightful place as a proud pathway to prosperity and self-reliance.

Congratulations.

Let's take a moment to reflect on what you've accomplished. Each of you has completed at least 7,000 hours of on-the-job training and 1,000 hours in the classroom. Multiply that by 128 graduates-that's over a million hours dedicated to mastering the craft that keeps America strong at sea. A million hours of skill, sweat, and commitment-all devoted to building freedom.

How proud we are as a nation that all 128 of you are ours.

On the eve of America's 250th birthday, you carry a legacy that few will experience. Graduates across this country will contribute in meaningful ways-but the responsibility you take on is immense. In a single hour, your craft shapes what will endure for generations. With every weld, every frame, every system you master, you are safeguarding America's freedom-and its reputation-in your hands. (No pressure!)

Each of you has passed the Rock and Collis P. Huntington's credo: "We shall build good ships here; at a profit if we can, at a loss if we must, but always good ships."

Class of 2025, you've already spent months navigating what they call "the real world." If I could leave you with one piece of advice, it would be this: the greatest influence you have over others isn't money, a job title, or connections-it's the power of your example.

As ships bearing the American flag sail into foreign ports as messengers of peace, remember this: you, too, are living messengers of what it means to be an American-through the families you create, the communities you strengthen, and the integrity you uphold. So go and build your futures: at a profit if you can, at a loss if you must-but always good ones.

Like the intrepid voyagers stepping off the Mayflower, today you chart your own course into a New World of possibilities. I can't wait to see what you will create.

Thank you. Congratulations, Class of 2025! May God bless you and, may God bless the United States of America.