COEUR d'ALENE — Hundreds of people packed the Christianson Gymnasium at North Idaho College Friday to cheer on friends and family members as they proudly walked toward the next chapter of their lives.

More than 350 students participated in the ceremony, and President Joe Dunlap reported more than 1,000 students qualified for graduation. Dunlap then encouraged the audience to welcome the class of 2016, to which the audience responded with an outpouring of applause and messages of support.

"Thank you for your commitment to your education, yourselves, and this gathering place we call North Idaho College," Dunlap said to the graduates after the applause died down.

Following the introduction of the North Idaho College Board of Trustees, and other public officials who attended the commencement, Dunlap introduced David Thompson, a physics instructor who was selected by the student body to give this year's commencement address. Thompson — who holds a doctorate in physics, previously served as a staff scientist at Los Alamos National Laboratory, and is known to his students as "Doc" — began his remarks by telling students their achievement is "a gift to yourselves and us all."

He then continued by stating the title of his speech, "The Mess You're In," and told graduates he would not only be describing the greatest challenge they will face following graduation, but he would also describe how they could overcome that challenge.

"Stories bind us together," Thompson said. "And you benefit when you recognize that you are more of a human story than a human being."

Thompson said if we live without attempting to gather a multi-faceted story of those around us, we will never understand what is in the hearts of others.

"That leads to us lashing out with misunderstanding," he added.

To resist the tendency to not seek out the stories of others, especially those with alternative views to their own, Thompson challenged the students to cultivate their superpower — attention.

"Attention is the single force with the strength to shape individual psyches and global economies," Thompson said. "It's the most valuable commodity on the planet."

Modern technology, he added, has the unique ability to interrupt and district us from our superpower of attention. It will take discipline, Thompson said, to balance the complexities of modern life with the simple joys of giving someone else undivided attention.

"Listen deeply to the stories of others," Thompson said in a challenge to the graduates as he concluded his remarks. "You have the opportunity to be a co-author, rather than just play a role in a story. Will you rise to the occasion? Will you have the courage to face your greatest fears? To pay attention and help write a bigger story?"

The name of each graduate participating in the ceremony was then read as they walked on stage to receive their diplomas. After each name was read, pockets of the gymnasium erupted in loud applause and cheering.

Following the ceremony, many of the participating students joyously threw their caps into the air while proud family and friends looked on. The NIC Alumni Association then hosted a reception on campus, which included a photographer taking a photo of the entire graduating class.