Massachusetts native Jennifer Coolidge tells Emerson College graduates, "friggin' go for it" (2025)

Massachusetts native Jennifer Coolidge returned to her alma mater Emerson College Sunday to deliver the commencement address for the Class of 2025.

Coolidge, who grew up in Norwell, told the graduates she was a "very strange kid" and advised parents to not worry about their children succeeding. She said when she was in first grade, she participated in field day and her teacher explained to the whole class how to do the obstacle course.

"When the gun went off, I ran like hell," said Coolidge, who said she crossed the finish line ahead of the fastest girl in school. "I was so elated that I won and to me, it meant that I was going to get the blue ribbon. And then the teacher came up to me and told me that I didn't win the blue ribbon because I was disqualified. And it turns out, I had skipped all the obstacles."

She said her classmates made fun of her and remarked that it sounded "meaner" because they all had strong Boston accents.

"Just friggin' go for it"

Coolidge said this made her live completely in her head and decide "you just have to have insane expectations and believe they're going to come true."

She said this led her to want to become Queen of Monaco because her mother had a magazine with Grace Kelly on the cover. She used this to share a message with the Class of 2025.

"When you find the thing that you want to do, I really want to highly recommend, just friggin' go for it."

"Don't listen to the people who mess up the real story that you've got going," said Coolidge. "You really have to be your own champion."

Coolidge said she brought up the obstacle course story to reiterate "it doesn't really matter what anyone thinks or says. 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. Part of directing your life is just letting it unfold. So let it."

Coolidge ended her speech by quoting Elle Woods, "my co-partner in crime," from the movie "Legally Blonde" by saying, "we did it!"

Who is Jennifer Coolidge?

Coolidge is best known for the HBO TV series "The White Lotus," for which she won two Emmys and a Golden Globe. In addition to "Legally Blonde," she's also appeared in the "American Pie" movie series, "Best In Show" and most recently "A Minecraft Movie."

In 2023, Harvard University's Hasty Pudding Theatricals crowned Coolidge their Woman of the Year. The same year, she made the cover of TIME Magazine's 100 Most Influential People.

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