Return to in-person commencement sees largest-ever UMass Lowell class graduate to cheers of friends, family
05/14/2022
Contact for media: Emily Gowdy_Backus, Emily_GowdyBackus@uml.edu, Nancy Cicco, Nancy_Cicco@uml.edu
LOWELL, Mass. – At a university known for its commitment to sustainability, Commencement speaker Dr. Ashish Jha spoke to the Class of 2022 graduates about one of the nation’s most valuable renewable resources – possibility.
“What makes people successful isn’t an easy glide path, what makes them successful is their belief in possibility,” said the policy expert and White House COVID-19 response coordinator. “It never runs out. The only time you run out of chances is when you decide you’ve run out of chances.”
Nodding to the nearly one-quarter of UMass Lowell’s Class of 2022 who are first-generation college graduates, and the many others who make up the graduating cohort, Jha charged the class with “dismantl[ing] the barriers that limit possibilities.
“For too many, the door is shut tight,” he said. “Commit to making possibility more equitable for those who are coming next.”
UMass Lowell celebrated its largest and most diverse class – 4,690 graduates representing 46 states and 113 countries – Friday and Saturday at the Tsongas Center during its first in-person Commencement ceremonies since 2019. Graduates, family, friends and administrators also heard from Sian Proctor, a pilot and a professor at South Mountain Community College, in Phoenix, Arizona.
Invoking the memory of Bessie Coleman, the first Black, Indigenous woman to earn an aviation pilot's license, and the groundbreaker’s ties to her own life, Proctor spoke about those who have paved the path for her – the first Black female commercial astronaut.
“We all have a legacy – a family tree that isn’t based on family – but instead is forged from hope,” she said. “Hope for a better tomorrow.”
Jha and Proctor were both honored with Doctor of Humane Letters degrees by UMass Lowell Chancellor Jacquie Moloney.
In her remarks to the graduating seniors, Moloney noted the obstacles the Class of 2022 faced, and overcame, in a time of uncertainty.
“You, more than any graduating classes before, have had your character tested by the pandemic in a way you could never have imagined," Moloney told graduates. “Despite all that was going on around you, you showed fortitude and determination to work even harder to make sure you got everything you could out of the education afforded you at UMass Lowell.”
This weekend’s ceremonies will be the last as chancellor for Moloney, who announced last summer she will return to the faculty at the end of June.
“It is my greatest wish for you, our graduates, to find a career as fulfilling as I found here at UMass Lowell,” she said.
During the Saturday afternoon ceremony, the crowd rose in unison to celebrate the surprise reunion of graduating senior Jamie William Fay and his brother, Airman First Class David Fay of the United States Air Force.
Student Speakers
Masachs Boungou, a first-generation college graduate and native of the Republic of the Congo, described a childhood of uncertainty and fear in a country gripped by violence and civil war. Calling UMass Lowell a “touchstone,” he spoke of the university as a community that prepared him and fellow graduates for what’s to come.
“Our time at UMass Lowell has prepared us to face the real world with creativity and drive,” he told attendees on Friday. “It invokes inspirations that shape our present and future conditions.”
Annie La Fortune Soup Koagne, a graduating senior from Worcester who studied public health and marketing, spoke Saturday morning of self-exploration and finding a grounding in personal identity. “College was a pivotal time,” she said to the crowd. “I had the opportunity to find myself, my friends, my strengths and my weaknesses.”
Koagne explained many of these discoveries took place during her “toughest times,” when she considered dropping out. But the resources available to her at UMass Lowell, and a mentor she connected with, helped her stay enrolled and graduate ahead of schedule.
“The only thing UMass Lowell owes me now is sleep,” she quipped.
Shirley native and business administration graduating senior, Adam Basma, spoke of his pride in being in the River Hawk community and the obstacles he and his classmates overcame in the past four years.
“With our heads held high and pride in our hearts, let’s never forget those who are sitting right beside us, in front of us and behind us – and what it means to be a River Hawk.”
Award Recipients
Distinguished guests were recognized along with top student award winners the week of Commencement.
Keynote speakers Jha and Proctor, alumnus and longtime UMass Lowell philanthropist Brian Rist ’77, his wife Kim, and Lawrence Lin ’90 received honorary degrees. Together, the Rists established UMass Lowell’s first endowed deanship benefiting students in the Manning School of Business. Lin, also in partnership with his wife, Jang-Lin Chin ’80, established the UMass Lowell Lin Makerspace, an 8,500-square-foot open concept engineering work area located in Falmouth Hall.
Honored guests, community advocates and members of the extended UMass Lowell community were also applauded for myriad achievements during the weekend’s celebrations.
- Award-winning and best-selling author Andre Dubus III was presented with the Chancellor’s Medal for the Arts. A UMass Lowell professor of English, Dubus’ works are published in more than 25 languages.
- Distinguished alumni awards were presented to Stephen Driscoll ’66, ’72, a 50-plus-year faculty member of the UMass Lowell plastics engineering department, and William O’Shea ’69, ’03 (H), a former executive of Lucent Technologies and president of Bell Laboratories. O’Shea is the 2022 recipient of the university’s James B. Francis Distinguished Engineer award.
- Chancellor’s Medals for Public Service and Civic Engagement were awarded to local philanthropists John and Linda Chemaly, Lowell City Manager Eileen Donoghue and her spouse John J. O’Connor, and Lowell General Hospital, the region’s largest employer.
- Former UMass Lowell senior vice chancellor for finance, operations and strategic planning, Joanne Yestramski ’76, as well as the Independent University Alumni Association at Lowell was honored with the Chancellor’s Medal for Outstanding University Support.
Additional awards were granted throughout the ceremonies. A complete list of distinguished guests and graduating seniors with top academic achievements can be found on the UMass Lowell Commencement website.
UMass Lowell is a national research university located on a high-energy campus in the heart of a global community. The university offers its students bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in business, education, engineering, fine arts, health, humanities, sciences and social sciences. UMass Lowell delivers high-quality educational programs, vigorous hands-on learning and personal attention from leading faculty and staff, all of which prepare graduates to be leaders in their communities and around the globe. www.uml.edu