Dante Kirkman becomes first pro boxer to graduate from Stanford University

Dante Kirkman is the first professional boxer to graduate from Stanford University. 

The unbeaten middleweight recently achieved that goal, earning his BA in Arts Practice. Graduation day came a little more than three months after Kirkman’s latest victory, a first-round knockout on March 8 in Lincoln, California.

Kirkman, 4-0 (2 KOs), who lives in Palo Alto, California, has had two paths since he was 10 years old. Along with boxing, he wanted to attend Stanford University and graduate.

His mother, Catherine Kirkman, went to Stanford Law School; his brother, Tremaine Kirkman, is also a graduate.

“Going to Stanford was always a dream of mine,” Kirkman told BoxingScene. “I had grown up a part of the community, and I even got baptized at the Stanford Catholic Church.”

Among the prominent graduates from Stanford who went on to achieve excellence at the pro level are Tiger Woods, Mike Mussina, Rose Zhang, Andrew Luck and John Elway.

There is also Katie Ledecky, the legendary nine-time Olympic gold medalist and most decorated female swimmer of all time. Kirkman drew inspiration from Ledecky’s commencement speech during the graduation ceremony.

The most influential boxing personality in Kirkman’s career thus far has his own history with Stanford. Eddie Croft – who trains the 23-year-old out of his B Street Boxing Gym facility in San Mateo, California - had his own familial experience with Stanford.

“My dad worked there; he didn’t go to Stanford, but he worked there,” Croft told BoxingScene. “In the 70s and 80s, he was what they called a computer operator.” 

Croft’s father worked on huge computers that probably process less than a cell phone in modern times.

Croft wanted to be a fighter his whole life. He carved out a respectable career for himself as a top ten contender and former three-time world title challenger.

He saw similar ambition when he first met Kirkman, who trained near home in East Palo Alto at the time.

Kirkman had lofty goals of being an Olympian and one of the best pound-for-pound fighters. He trained during the week while reserved his weekends for homework.

“It was tiring,” Kirkman said. “I would train, sit in class, then go and run later.”

It was a balancing act, but Croft understood how important a college education meant to Kirkman. 

“I told him, ‘Okay, we will work around it’,” Croft said. “When he got into seventh grade, he stopped playing football, and he stopped running track. He was only concentrating on boxing and school, with school being the number one.”

The transition wasn’t easy for Kirkman. Croft remembers him as a natural athlete, but boxing is nothing that comes naturally. 

“In football, he was one of the best on his team. In track, he was one of the fastest, but boxing is a little bit different,” Croft said. “You can’t just enter a gym with athletic ability and think you are going to whoop everybody.”

“You have to fight with the right instinct; you can’t let emotion cloud your judgment. You look at insects or animals and think, how can they be so cold? Well, they don’t let emotion cloud their instincts.”

Kirkman recalls two specific experiences when he had to change his schedule for school.

He went with Croft to Germany to train with contender Evgeny Shvedenko in Germany. Shvedenko was preparing to fight William Scull in an IBF title eliminator. Kirkman would still get on Zoom calls for college classes and even finished his finals overseas.

Another time, he recalled using a dedicated area that USA Boxing had set up for the fighters to prepare for college entry exams. 

“When I was in high school, they had a study hall at nationals, and my mom was very big on me doing SAT prep,” Kirkman said. “The study halls were basically empty, and the fact that I brought in an SAT prep book impressed people at USA Boxing.”

Kirkman recalled interning for Mayweather Promotions, training for national tournaments, and going to school as a struggle, which he endured at one point. 

Now, Kirkman has accomplished his first goal: becoming a Stanford graduate.

Kirkman remembered the competitive environment he was a part of during his education, as his teachers at the university wanted him to hop on Zoom calls the day of his fights at the national tournament.

“I didn’t jump on those calls,” Kirkman said, with a chuckle. “But that is the culture of Stanford.  I could tell them that I am one of the best amateur boxers in the country, but that wasn’t enough. They still wanted me to turn in assignments on time and hop on Zoom calls.”

Kirkman is already a solid regional ticket seller in Northern California. Once mesmerized by the famous athletes who’ve graduated from Stanford, he now aims to join that list and carve out a reputation as a pound-for-pound level fighter.

“I want to write my own history,” Kirkman said.

Lucas Ketelle is the author of “Inside the Ropes of Boxing,” a guide for young fighters, a writer for BoxingScene and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. Find him on X at.