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Thousands gathered at Crafton Hills College (CHC) on Wednesday, May 25, for a special kind of celebration — three years in the making. Graduates of the classes of 2020, 2021 and 2022 celebrated their respective graduations during a campus-wide commencement ceremony, the first in-person event of its kind following the COVID-19 pandemic.
The ceremony included the largest graduating class in CHC’s 50-year history, with 1,071 graduates earning 808 degrees and 853 certificates. Graduates ranged in age from 18-years-old to 70-years-old and included 34 military veterans. Of the 1,071 graduates, more than 315 earned a grade point average of 3.5 or higher, including 63 students who earned a perfect 4.0.
“I can’t begin to tell you how exciting it is to see all of your wonderful faces in person,” said CHC President Dr. Kevin Horan during the ceremony before taking a selfie with those in attendance from the commencement stage.
The May 25th ceremony was the culminating event following a month of graduation-related activities held throughout the month of May at CHC. Each scheduled speaker stressed to the audience the hard work that every graduate endured – the new normal of remote services and online learning.
“The last two years have defined what it takes to be persistent, and you encouraged all of us by showing up and doing the work,” said Brandi Bailes, CHC Academic Senate president.
Brandice Mello, CHC’s Classified Senate president agreed.
“Every day is a moment to be proud of. It is easy to highlight the times we want to give up and throw it all away, but happiness is limitless,” Mello said.
In addition to the awarding of diplomas, graduates and their families were treated to music by Plays Well With Others, the National Anthem sung by graduate Lucy McIntosh, and remarks from student commencement speaker and 2022 CHC graduate Victoria Karalun.
Graduation day was years in the making for Karalun, a re-entry student and mother who has become a published author and presented her research at over 40 conferences during her time at CHC.
During her address, Karalun reflected on her path to and at CHC and recalled a quote that changed her life – “Do one thing every day that scares you,” — inspiring her to enroll at CHC in 2017.
“Much of our learning has taken place online,” she said. “We’ve had no choice but to take a path that pushed us out of our comfort zone. Any one of us could have given up on our education. But being here today is proof we are here to work hard.”
“We are the ones graduating in this crazy, unique time,” Karalun continued. “Let us not take for granted how special it is that we are here together today.”
Graduation highlights can be found on CHC’s social media channels, including its Facebook page at facebook.com/CraftonHillsCollege, and at craftonhills.edu.
