Jennifer Coolidge Shares Heartfelt Message In Commencement Speech

Jennifer Coolidge offered graduates a heartfelt reminder that sometimes the world underestimates exactly those it shouldn’t.

Coolidge — known for her humor and eccentric charm — stayed true to form as she delivered a commencement speech to Emerson College graduates on Sunday. Returning to her alma mater, just “40 miles down the road” from where she grew up, the actor reflected on the winding path that brought her back — complete with memories of being overlooked, doubted and delightfully strange.

“If you had told the kids that I grew up with that … one day I would have this opportunity like this, they would’ve laughed in your face,” she said.

Coolidge said she understood their disbelief — after all, she remembers being a “very strange kid.”

The actor pivoted and addressed the parental figures in the audience: “To all the parents and caregivers in the audience that are worried about their kids succeeding, I just want to say: ‘Don’t.’”

The “Legally Blonde” star then shared a childhood memory she described as “traumatizing.” She recounted the time at the end of first grade when she was disqualified from her school’s field day. She technically finished first — but forgot one minor detail: completing the obstacle course that was part of the challenge.

“And then the teacher came up to me and told me that I didn’t win the blue ribbon because I was disqualified,” she said. “And it turns out, I had skipped all of the obstacles. I just ran along the outside.”

The story landed somewhere between comedic and crushing — and, as laughter softened, the lesson settled in.

This misstep from her youth became a metaphor for something larger: the importance of charting your own path, even if it doesn’t follow the designated course. She admitted that for years she was haunted by others’ perceptions, but now sees that sensitivity not as a flaw but a strength — one often shared by people who are “better at stuff.”

She then addressed those who have ever been told they aren’t enough: “Don’t listen to the people who mess up the real story that you’ve got going.”

She urged each graduate to be their “own champion,” concluding: “It really doesn’t matter what anyone thinks or says. I mean, when it comes to the obstacle course of your life, you have to find your own path. And you can’t perfectly plan it out from the beginning. And part of directing your life is just letting it unfold.”