By Nosakhare Okunmwendia
More than 3,700 graduates recently joined a community of 84,000 living alumni of the University of Massachusetts, Lowell, thereby boosting United States labor force.
At the commencement ceremony which took place at Tsongas Center of UMass Lowell, on May 16, 2015, the university awarded 124 doctoral, 995 master’s and 2,567 baccalaureate degrees to the deserving students.
Special recognition was given to some candidates for their community services, distinguished academic achievement; baccalaureate degree honors, and department honors were also awarded.
The ceremony which attracted guests from various parts of the world commenced with a colorful procession, followed by a call to order. The national anthem was said by Umass Lowell Brass Choir and Umass Lowell Chamber Singers.
In a celebration mood, some of the dignitaries gave congratulatory messages to the graduates.
The Mayor of the City of Lowell, Honorable Rodney Elliott congratulated and greeted the graduates and the guests, touting Lowell as always a place of opportunity, a real destination where immigrants come to realize an American dream.
He applauded the university’s Chancellor, Martin Meehan, for the transformation of the campus in the past 7 ½ years.
Rodney told the graduates how much they took pride in each and every one of them, adding that the experience the graduates have had would provide them opportunities beyond the campus border.
An elated Rodney stated: “thank you for the energy you have brought to this campus, thank you for the light you have brought to down town, and we hope you would come back often. God bless you! God bless America.”
Senator Eileen Donoghue, first Middlesex District, brought congratulatory messages on behalf of the state legislature.
She thanked everyone that made the ceremony possible. According to her, having a degree from Umass is really an invaluable asset for moving forward.
She wished the graduates best of luck. Senator Eileen also encouraged the graduates to continue supporting not only Umass Lowell, but higher education in the commonwealth of Massachusetts.
The chancellor of Umass Lowell, Martin T. Meehan also gave his remark to the class of 2015. He said he had been motivated by men and women that came into the institution.
He congratulated the graduates on behalf of the university and said “college graduation is an important milestone in your life,” adding that the reward of a diploma is as a result of dedication and perseverance.
He implored the graduates to acknowledge friends and families that gave them support during their educational pursuit, saying “this is just the beginning of things to come. As a graduate and proud alumnus, you are an ambassador for Umass Lowell.”
From its earliest days, the university has aggressively sought to become a major intellectual center and an indispensable economic force in the commonwealth.
University of Lowell became one of the five parts of University of Massachusetts in 1991. New research centers and collaborations in nanomanufacturing, robotics, printed electronics, and terrorism and security studies, among others, provide transformative experiences for students and innovative research to the world.
122 bachelors’, 42 masters’ and 36 doctoral degree programs in six colleges are presently offered by the university.
Among those conferred with Doctor of Humane Letters, was Carole Cowan. Carole Cowan was the third president of the Middlesex Community College, retiring this year. Her academic achievements were cited as follows:
During her tenure, Dr. Carole led the development of commonwealth’s first privately financed capital pool to construct MCC’s Health, Science, and Technology Center.
The Middlesex horizon was tremendously spread out under her leadership, with the development of many international partnerships and training programs as well as foreign exchange opportunities for Middlesex Community College students, faculty and clients in more than 30 countries over two decades.
Dr. Cowan holds an honorary degree, Doctorate of Humane Letters from Suffolk University in recognition of her distinguished career in public higher education and an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Salem State College.
Among the graduates who gave thanks, congratulatory message and words of encouragement was Qurat Ann, a criminal justice major of the university.
Qurat Ann congratulated her fellow graduates and thanked the faculty members, on behalf of class 2015, for patiently guiding and teaching them beyond what was on the curriculum.
She also thanked parents for believing in them. In addition, Quran implored all the graduates to use the skills they have acquired and opportunity given by the institution to make a significant impact in their society.
Her words: “let’s build each other up, let’s celebrate our differences, let’s turn our success into world success, let’s stand together and be a light.”
Ewemade Okunmwendia, also a criminal justice major in a chat with Alltimepost.com expressed her feelings, saying: “it wasn’t an easy journey, but we made it.”
She thanked her family and friends for their support and above all thanked God. She also congratulated her fellow graduates for their great academic achievement.
Ewemade went further to encourage students never to give up their dreams no matter the circumstances, and also to engage in school activities, saying, “hard work always pays.”
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