May 11, 2023 – Stone Ridge, NY – SUNY Ulster’s seventh President, Alison Buckley, Ed.D. will preside over the College’s 59th Commencement on Saturday, May 20, 2023, at 10:00 a.m. on the SUNY Ulster Soccer Field/Louis Berger Athletic Fields on the Stone Ridge campus. President Buckley will present 130 students with a degree or certificate at the Commencement ceremony.
Graduates marching in academic regalia will receive four tickets each for guests to attend the commencement. The Soccer Field will be open for guest seating at 8:30 a.m., and the ceremony starts at 10:00 a.m. In the event of light to moderate rain, a decision for the outdoor ceremony to be moved inside will be made and communicated to graduates as soon as possible.
The event will be video streamed live for guests without tickets and can be viewed from any remote location as the ceremony occurs from our website at sunyulster.edu/graduation or from our YouTube channel . The graduating class consists of 429 students. Three hundred twenty-nine (329) will receive associate degrees and 100 will receive certificates. The youngest graduate is 17, and the oldest is 64. Of the class, 73 are graduating with highest honors, 145 are graduating with honors, 3 students are graduating with the Honors Studies program distinction, 7 students are being recognized with the President’s Medal of Highest Honor for earning a 4.0 GPA, and 57 are members of the national honor society Phi Theta Kappa. There are also 21 students graduating as nurses.
Tim Guinee, actor and environmental activist will give the keynote address. Tim Guinee is the President of Climate Action Now and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Commission on Accelerating Climate Solutions. As a leader in former Vice-President Al Gore’s Climate Reality Project, he has given presentations on the climate emergency all over the U.S., Canada, and North Africa. He is also the founder of The Climate Actors and serves on the Leadership Council of Riverkeeper, the board of the Ashokan Center, and the board of Green Product Placement. He is the official climate change liaison for the town of Marbletown, NY with the Climate Mayors, and serves as the New York legislative action director for the New York Climate Reality Chapters Coalition. Mr. Guinee earns his living as an actor and has performed in hundreds of films, plays, and episodes of television.
Other speakers include Grand Marshal Kari Mack, Director of library studies, Faculty Marshal Kevin R. Stoner, Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of Faculty; Deborah Briggs, Board of Trustees Chair; The Honorable Patrick K. Ryan, United States Congressman; The Honorable Michelle Hinchey, New York State Senator; The Honorable Sarahana Shrestha, New York State Assemblymember; The Honorable Jen Metzger, Ulster County Executive; The Honorable Tracey A. Bartels, Ulster County Legislature Chair; Christopher Mikesh, Esq., Ulster Community College Foundation, Inc., Secretary; and Matthew Goodell, Assistant Professor of Mathematics, & Academic Senate Chair.
SUNY Ulster held an inaugural student speaker competition and Logan Erlwein was selected to deliver remarks to his fellow classmates and serve as student marshal.
The Reverend Allison Moore, Ph.D., of St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, New Paltz, will deliver the invocation and benediction. Music will be performed by members of the College Choral Ensemble directed by Janet Gehres, and Old Capital Brass directed by Victor Izzo, Jr.
The security policy does not permit large bags and backpacks. Large purses and diaper bags will be checked. Guests will be asked to leave their strollers in a designated area on the soccer field.
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