Four lucky graduating seniors at Xavier University of Louisiana received the surprise of a lifetime during the annual Black History Convocation ceremony when Xavier alum and award-winning civil rights attorney, L. Chris Stewart, announced a pledge on behalf of his firm to pay off the tuition balance for the graduating seniors. Mr. Stuart announced the surprise with a charge for students to “pay it forward” by doing the same when they are able to one day.

During his speech, Stewart shared stories of his own college experiences at Xavier-- financial issues included. He admitted that as a former student, he often worried about finances, food and his academic performance. Stewart reassured students that he understands what it is like to be in their position and acknowledged the hard work and dedication that is required to be a successful student at Xavier. Most importantly, he reassured them that the hard work will one day pay off.

L. Chris Stewart concluded his speech by encouraging students to live to serve others as opposed to living to impress them. He emphasized the advantages of being a person of color. "You are the descendants of  kings and queens. Slavery only lasted for 200 years-- our ancestors ruled for thousands of years. Your blackness is a strength, not a weakness," said Stewart.