Jean Paul Al Arab felt like a proud dad this week when he prepared to walk across the University at Buffalo stage with his son, 6-month-old Mtanos.
The pair donned matching blue caps and gowns and queued up in line behind fellow 2025 graduates, with the elder Al Arab ready to accept his Bachelor of Arts degree in criminology.
But rather than a joyful but tranquil parade down the stage during the commencement ceremony, what happened instead was a high-speed foot chase, as Al Arab sprinted across the stage, clutching his baby boy, with a university police officer darting behind him.
Viral video from the event shows the pair make it across the stage. Al Arab shakes hands with school officials before triumphantly pumping his fist in the air to wild cheers from the audience.
Al Arab posted a video of the incident, backed by the hit Kendrick Lamar song "Not Like Us," to his TikTok account where it has been viewed hundreds of thousands of times.
@jeanpaul_alarab I’m a full-time student, working two jobs—one of them overnight—and taking care of my son during the day until his mom gets home from work. And here I am, graduating, with my boy by my side. WE DID IT! #ub #comencement #baby #graduation ♬ original sound - NFL
Speaking to NPR on Thursday, Al Arab said the incident sprung from a disagreement over whether or not he could tote the infant across stage with him to celebrate his achievement.
"During the prep class for the ceremony last semester, they told me that it was fine to walk with the baby," Al Arab said.
"And I've seen people walk with their dogs. I've seen even moms walking with their babies, you know, even at other colleges, I'm not just talking about [University at Buffalo]. So I didn't think honestly twice."
But on Sunday as he prepared to make the ceremonial walk with his son, Al Arab said that a single university staff member attempted to stop him from carrying Mtanos with him to accept his diploma.
"I was just a proud dad"
But after months as Mtanos' primary caretaker during the day while his wife worked, and spending nights on a restaurant graveyard shift, Al Arab — who moved to the United States from Lebanon three years ago — felt he had a duty to see it through.
"Being a full-time dad, a full-time student, and a full-time employee, I thought to myself, like, [Mtanos is] part of it. I promised myself and I promised him that I would be walking that stage with him," Al Arab said.
"At that time, I was just a proud dad," he said. "I just wanted to cross with my baby."
Al Arab said that growing up, his father was not as present in his life as he is able to be for Mtanos. He felt that the moment of crossing the graduation stage with his son set a good example for other fathers to prioritize being active in their children's lives.
"I would describe it as a healthy relationship between a father and son, especially me, coming from a family [where] I don't have a father who was present, so I think that I have a lot of responsibilities towards my son," Al Arab said.
Al Arab will still get his diploma
The University at Buffalo wrote in a statement on Wednesday that its graduation ceremony rules dictate that only the student accepting a diploma is allowed to walk across the stage. The school said that although Al Arab had broken the rules, he would not be penalized and his diploma still issued as expected.
"During Sunday's commencement ceremony for University at Buffalo's College of Arts and Sciences, a graduating senior ignored multiple directives from university event staff and UB Police, ran away from officers, and broke commencement rules by bringing an infant onto the commencement stage at Alumni Arena," the school said.
"While the situation created a light-hearted moment for the thousands in attendance who cheered on as the graduate took to the stage with the infant in his arms, the graduate's actions were a violation of commencement rules," the statement continued, adding that those guidelines were in place for safety reasons and to help minimize potential disruptions.
Al Arab said the moment of chaos onstage inspired him to start a GoFundMe, with a goal of raising $100,000, to help other student parents who are balancing raising children with pursuing higher education.
"Balancing two jobs, being a full-time dad, and pursuing my education has been challenging, but I promised my son that I would walk that stage with him. It symbolized every sacrifice and sleepless night," he wrote on the crowdfunding site.
Al Arab told NPR that students had already expressed interest in receiving help from the GoFundMe, and he would be working with his former professors to help get the money directly into young parents' hands.
Mtanos will have to wait
Even though Al Arab's son crossed the graduation stage in traditional commencement regalia, the school said the boy would have to wait a little longer to be considered a full-fledged member of the University at Buffalo family.
"The infant, despite crossing the stage in a cap and gown, has not yet earned enough credits to receive a diploma. We hope to see him back on stage in about 20 years so he can follow in his dad's footsteps," it said in the statement.
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