On Saturday, May 6, 441 students were awarded degrees during Roanoke College’s Commencement ceremony. Countless friends, family members and school administrative personnel filled up Turbyfill Quad to witness hundreds of individuals officially become Maroon Alums.
Rhode Island native Rebecca Elizabeth Hudon was valedictorian for the Class of 2017. “When I found out that I would be speaking at commencement, I worried about saying that right thing. I didn’t want to string together some clichés or try to offer wisdom when, in all honesty, I can learn just as much from you as you can learn from me,” Hudon, a finalist for the prestigious Rhodes Scholarship, said. “Grades aren’t everything. Whether you are graduating with a 3.9 or a 2.5, what is most important is that we all made it to this day and are ready to make our individual contributions to the world.”
Other memorable moments came from keynote speaker Bishop James Mauney. “Most people are mirrors. Few are windows, bringing light to bare on the dark corners where troubles fester,” the retiring bishop of the Virginia Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America said. “The whole purpose of education is to turn mirrors into windows.”
When asked what she will miss most about being a student at Roanoke College, Alexa Doiron said, “I was an RA for three years so I think I will just miss that connection to campus and with my residents.” She added: “It also was nice to wake up and just have to walk to anywhere I needed to go. Everything was within five minutes and that was really convenient.”
Scott Swearingen, who graduated with a degree in Business Administration, said the thing he’s going to miss the most is hanging out with friends. “In a two-minute walk, I’d be at the PiKapp quad in Chesapeake Hall with my brothers,” he said. “Everyone would be floating in and out throughout the day, and I could see them with ease. I can’t do that anymore, and coming to terms with that has been harder than I imagined.”
Roanoke College President Michael Maxey conferred honorary degrees to former member of the College’s Board of Trustees Donald Kerr and Beth Macy, author of two New York Times best-selling books, before handing the students their diplomas.
Now that he has a degree in International Relations, Omari Chancellor said he already knows what the next chapter in his life is going to be. “Now that I’ve graduated, I’m moving to Los Angeles to work in film. Particularly production and writing. I’m pretty excited for the change,” he said. “My time at Roanoke College has given me exactly what I need to succeed in whatever I pursue.”
Richard Smith considers choosing to attend Roanoke College one of the best decisions that he’s ever made. “I came to Roanoke College mostly for the creative writing major and the chance to do some serious writing,” Smith, who interned at the Salem Times-Register, said. “It’s a bittersweet feeling knowing what I’m leaving behind – friends, professors and the neighborhood. I’d like to thank my friends and professors – Schultz, Almeder and Hanstedt in particular – for a great four years.”
