Marian University To Hold Commencement Ceremonies Saturday

Graduation Day is a culmination of years of long days of studying, and short nights of sleep. And despite all that 2020 has thrown at students in general, Marian University will hold commencement ceremonies Saturday, Dec. 12 to honor the May, August and December graduates who preferred to be recognized for their accomplishments now in favor of the May 2021 in-person ceremony.

This includes 114 students – 70 undergraduate, 15 adult, 25 master’s and 4 doctoral.

61 graduates in the 12:30 p.m. audience-less ceremony, which will stream live on MarianUniversity.edu, will robe in the Stayer Center before processing in a socially distanced fashion into the Sadoff Gymnasium.

There, students will receive their diploma on stage and have their photograph professionally taken with President Dr. Michelle Majewski, before descending the stage and having another photo taken with their diploma before exiting the Gymnasium.

“This year’s graduates have accomplished so much, and in such challenging times, and they deserve to have the opportunity to walk across the stage how they had always envisioned,” said Majewski. “We hope they know how proud of them we are, and we hope we’re able to make this moment everything they dreamed of.”

At 4 p.m., a virtual ceremony – also airing on MarianUniversity.edu – will honor 99 graduates, and will include speeches from General Superior of the Congregation of Sisters of St. Agnes Sr. Jean Steffes, Board Chair, David Klumpyan, President Majewski, and 2019-2020 Student Senate President Brock Weston.

“If we step back and consider all the changes, challenges and experiences we encountered, we are quite the incredible group of people,” Weston said. “We are resilient. We are adaptable. We are strong. And now we are confident as we move forward to our next endeavor.”

Based on a survey of graduates asking about their preferences for alternatives, Marian University is planning to host the graduates who did not participate in the traditional, in-person ceremony in May 2021.

For more information, visit MarianUniversity.edu/graduation.