Caps Fly High as University of Dayton Honors Its Newest Graduates
Kylee Nickel | Contributing Writer
Graduation is a time of celebration, symbolized by students tossing their mortar boards into the air to mark the end of an important chapter at the same time recognizing all that they have accomplished.
At the University of Dayton, graduation is the celebration of the years the students have spent together and all getting together one last time to celebrate the accomplishments of the class.
Graduate commencement will take place May 10 at 12:45 p.m., and the undergraduate commencement will follow the next day at 9:45 a.m. Both events are to take place at UD Arena. Some of the students graduating have a few things to say about their time at UD and their futures.
“I’m very happy to be graduating,” said Fernando Pedroza Cortes, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering technology, he is taking a small break to recharge and continue his job search after graduation. “As a first-generation student, it’s an incredible honor to be the first in my family to graduate from college. It’s been a long journey, and I’m proud to make my family proud. At the same time, it’s a little sad to be leaving the friends and memories I’ve made here at UD.”
Graduation is a time to look back at all the good times you had and all the long nights paying off, but also to look forward to the future and all the opportunities you have waiting for you.
“It feels like a big ball of emotions,” said Sama Ahmed, graduating with her master’s of higher education and student affairs.“I am exhausted, proud, burnt out, overwhelmed, excited, grateful, and I am definitely gonna miss this place. I am also in disbelief that soon I’ll have a master’s degree.”
Photo from Dayton Daily News, Class of 2024, undergraduate commencement ceremony. Click here to see more photos.
Doors to the arena will open one hour before each ceremony. Guests should enter through the main entrances, as the east and west doors will be closed. Tickets are not required. The ceremonies usually last about two to three hours, depending on the number of students graduating.
Both ceremonies will be livestreamed the weekend of May 10 on the UD graduation website. Click here to go to the website.