2026 UMF Undergraduate Commencement Speaker: Adam Tosch

UMF graduating senior, Adam Tosch, will give UMF’s undergraduate Commencement student address to the Class of 2026 on May 9. Tosch started his academic career at UMF in 2007 and recently returned to complete his bachelor’s degree in anthropology through UMF’s adult degree completion program.

In between his times at UMF, he earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering and worked in the industry, however his passion for history, Medieval architecture and fieldwork brought him back to his alma mater to pursue a degree that he could embrace as his life’s work.

“I was ready for a different career perspective and UMF made it possible,” said Tosch. “Changing careers is very stressful, but having UMF professors who always make time for you and support your efforts makes all the difference.”

In his speech to his classmates, he plans to share that, “graduation day is not the end of the journey but the beginning of multiple journeys as we branch out onto greater things. Graduation is not the end of our educational experience. It is a starting point.”

“In two short years, Adam has excelled academically while serving as an active member in the department and student Anthropology club,” said Luke Kellett, UMF associate professor of Anthropology. “Most notable has been Adam’s passion for Scottish archaeology and his laser focused goal of becoming a professional archaeologist. Adam serves as a unique success story about how returning and non-traditional students at UMF can pursue their passions and accomplish big things.”

“I love doing historical research, getting in the field and digging and uncovering the past, ” said Tosch.

Tosch presented an original research project at UMF’s recent all-campus Symposium on the Northern Picts, an indigenous group that existed in Scotland from the period of Roman occupation. He has been accepted in a master’s program at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland, to continue his research.