Winter Class of 2024 honored during 毕业典礼 ceremonies

Over 3,100 members of Grand Valley's Winter Class of 2024 took part in 毕业典礼 ceremonies at Van Andel Arena on 四月二十六日及二十七日.

Following the opening processional, the ceremonies began with remarks by Felix Ngassa, professor of chemistry and chair 大学学术评议会主席.

菲洛梅娜五世总统. 曼特拉欢迎毕业生 this significant milestone, even more meaningful for the class of 2024 – many of whom began their college careers in 2020.

“Your class has had a disruption unlike any other,” 曼指出. “There was no road map, and there was no history book to read to see how previous students managed through the 全球流行病的挑战. 你今天坐在这里，拿 graduation moment that you deserve and that many of you were denied 四年前.”

Following her remarks, Mantella recognized this year’s guest 演讲者 and honorary degree recipient, Timothy 施赖弗, chair of Special Olympics International and co-founder of UNITE. 施赖弗 was awarded his honorary degree at Friday’s ceremony, and at Friday and 周六早上的 ceremonies, shared a message to inspire taking a chance on others and leading with dignity.. 

“So I ask you, graduates, to take a chance on others. Take a chance on dignity,” 施赖弗 remarked. "师是 biggest challenge in our country and you are on the side of solving this problem with a practical, meaningful, and impactful strategy. It’s a solution steeped in the faith that honoring each other’s 尊严是一种爱国义务.”

Following 施赖弗’s recognition, Jenny Hall-Jones, vice president for Student Affairs, introduced each ceremony’s student 演讲者. The student 演讲者 at the Friday evening ceremony was Logyn Miller, who is receiving his bachelor's degree in secondary education with an emphasis in mathematics. 周六早上的 student 演讲者 was Jowei Yek, an international student from Petaling Jaya, Malaysia receiving his master's degrees in business 行政与社会创新. 在星期六下午 ceremony, Elizabeth Schanz, who received degrees in multimedia journalism and dance, addressed the crowd.

In his remarks, Yek shared his path to Grand Valley. “My journey to Grand Valley began 100 years ago, in Fuzhou, China. My ancestors had too many mouths to feed, so, they left to find their ‘land of milk and honey’ in Malaysia. 马来西亚覆盖着 rubber trees, so they learned to live off the land. 每天早晨, they tediously scored the rubber trees one by one, and latex would 像新鲜的牛奶一样渗出来. They sold the rubber in weight, and in each kilogram, they planted a hope that their children could one day 成为一个. Today I became a first-generation, Malaysian Chinese 大峡谷毕业生.”

Following the students’ remarks, Mantella welcomed Anna Bremmer, Lindsey O’Donnell, Saamanthy Rajenthiran and Andrew Lenhart, visiting professor of voice, to perform “The Climb," written by Jessi Alexander and Jon Mabe.

The conferring of degrees was led by Mantella and Fatma Mili, provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs.

Graduates moved their tassels and were dismissed as official members of the Winter Class of 2024.

Graduates and their supporters have the opportunity to 购买 毕业典礼纪念品 以及 dvd 每个毕业典礼.