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Furman summer commencement celebrates graduating Paladins
Alyssa Hildenbrandt ’25 hugs a loved one after receiving her bachelor of arts degree at Furman University’s Summer Commencement ceremony Aug. 16. Photo by Owen Withycombe, Furman University.
Each of the graduates gathered on Aug. 16 at Furman University’s Hartness Pavilion walked their own paths to the annual summer commencement ceremony.
Furman President Elizabeth Davis addresses the graduates who received their degrees at Furman’s Summer Commencement ceremony Aug. 16. Photo by Owen Withycombe, Furman University.
Though the intimate ceremony isn’t as large a production as the spring ceremony, Dean of Faculty Jeremy Cass ’00 told friends and family it’s a chance to “reflect on the pathway of your graduate; where they’ve been, what they’ve accomplished and where they’re off to next.”
Some graduates finished their studies early and graduated during the summer – when the campus quietly bakes in the heat – to get a head-start on their futures.
Other graduates faced struggles that brought about unexpected academic delays. Some pursued majors that required more time, or they changed majors during their studies, or they were student athletes who needed a summer semester to balance their rigorous academic and athletic schedules.
No matter the road they took, their education was “about setting you up for an enriching lifetime of curious inquiry, careful and productive reflection and deep appreciation for the world around you,” Cass said.
Furman President Elizabeth Davis said each obstacle the graduates faced along the way “made you more resilient.”
“It taught you how to deal with ambiguity and with challenges you couldn’t have imagined,” she said. “It strengthened you and developed traits that are needed now more than ever in our complex society.”
Some of Furman’s 18 summer graduates gathered on Aug. 16 for the summer commencement ceremony in Hartness Pavilion. Photo by Owen Withycombe, Furman University.
Students graduating with a bachelor of arts degree were: Maria Naseem Ali, Olivia Sage DeVore, Joseph Aloysius Graham, Alyssa Belle Hildenbrandt, Isabella Mary Kelly (Cum Laude), Henry Fletcher Kleppel, Jillian Ann Knopf (Summa Cum Laude), Tommy Tai Lai, Alexandra Nieves Lanning, Davis J. Molner, Emilyanne Grace Shelley and Mateo Montalvo Vidal Nabergoy.
Students graduating with a bachelor of science degree were: Thomas Antonio Dawkins-Smith, Edith Lydia Erkens, Livia Fontana (Summa Cum Laude), Thomas Michael Kusinsky, John Wickware Martin and Chloe Ann Reynolds.