Albertus Magnus Celebrates 100th Commencement

Dressed in caps and gowns and with new diplomas in hand, 440 Albertus Magnus students graduated from the Prospect Hill Catholic college on Sunday — marking the school’s 100th such ceremony.

The centenary commencement awarded associates, bachelors, and masters recipients in front of Rosary Hall, with festivities continuing down Prospect Street throughout the morning and afternoon. While 440 degrees were conferred on Sunday, 347 students showed up for the celebratory ceremony.

Posing in front of Rosary Hall for grad pictures were friends Anna DeLucia, Jermaine Vazquez, and Lillian Woods.

Originally a communications major, 22-year-old DeLucia didn’t arrive at her B.S. in sports management until meeting her advisor Dr. Kristen DeCarli, associate professor at the Tagliatela School of Business and Leadership.

“She realized that I could have a career within sports that I didn’t realize I could have and I kind of just switched up all the opportunities that [were available] for me,” DeLucia said

Woods, a 22-year-old New Hampshire native, graduated with a B.A. in Psychology and a concentration in art therapy, as well as a minor in criminal justice and wanting ​“to help specifically adolescents at risk.”

With a B.A. in sports communications and minor in graphic design, Vazquez, 21, is taking his love of sports to work at Yale Athletics broadcast department, and is excited to cover ​“a variety of sports.”

Covid was a challenge that the group unanimously agreed on, with DeLucia saying that the pandemic ​“closed a lot of doors” of a normal college experience. 

As an out-of-state student, Woods mentioned her increased social hardship of being separated from her peers during quarantine and then from her family when she returned to school and moved out of online learning.

“That was very hard for me, but I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Woods said.

Their four years in school also brought in other life lessons of resilience for the friend group.

For DeLucia, she had to unlearn setting post goals based on societal expectations for her success.

“For all of us, we did [graduate in time] but like I know there were some points in time where we were like, ​‘Let’s take a gap year. This is too stressful.’” DeLucia said. ​“It’s not a race, it’s a marathon, you got to just keep with it.”

Vazquez stressed taking advantage of resources and knowing one’s limits.

“Don’t be afraid to ask for help, because everyone’s always there to give it,” Vazquez said. 

DeLucia and Woods both plan to go to grad school. DeLucia will return to Albertus next year to pursue a Masters in Business Administration and will have her tuition paid for through her graduate assistant work in the athletics communication department, while Woods will be heading to Springfield College for a master’s in art therapy. 

Taking pictures together were graduates Sonnetta Lynn Powell and Taneisha Swindell, best friends who bonded through their undergraduate experience at Albertus.

Swindell chose to graduate with a B.S. in Human Services after working in the human services field for 14 years. She said she wasn’t able to grow enough in her career and wanted to open more opportunities. Swindell works at Yale New Haven Hospital in a unit helping sex-trafficked kids. 

Swindell said that it was hard getting her degree, balancing being a mom of three, her occupational responsibilities, and medical scares, suffering from a stroke in September. When recalling her recovery she stepped back and pointed towards the sky. 

“That was a ​‘but God’ moment,” Swindell said, ​“Do you hear me?”

Despite the setbacks, Swindell has stayed committed to her educational pursuits. In addition to getting her bachelor’s she’s also enrolled in Albertus’ M.S. in Management and Organizational Leadership program and will be done in December.

Powell, 34, graduated with her B.A. in Sociology wanting to give back to underserved populations and her local community. 

“The whole journey was a challenge with losing a parent. Just going through my life obstacles and stuff like that,” Powell said. ​“I didn’t even think I was gonna be here today. So you know, I’m very grateful.”

Throughout her studies, Powell attributed God to her center of gravity and Swindell who was there to push her every step of the way.

“They don’t know the fight, the struggle, the generational curses. They don’t get it!” Swindell said, turning to Powell. ​“But we gonna make it. When two or three gather in His name, He is in the midst and we got this.” 

Powell stood silent and nodded in agreement under Swindell’s barrage of affirmations.

“I’m coming to get you. OK? And if you need a job in spite of it you call me. ​‘Cause I got all of them.”

Eating ice cream on a bench to cool off from the festivities was 22-year-old Arle Cruceta García. An international student from the Dominican Republic, she graduated magna cum laude with a B.A. in Spanish and minor in English. She wants to use her bilingualism to teach English in the D.R. and teach Spanish to non-Hispanic kids in the U.S.

García’s pathway into teaching wasn’t instantaneous and came after realizing her social abilities.

“Initially, I wanted to do art, but I think I changed my mind when I started to realize that I just like to talk and explain stuff to people,” she said.

García’s outgoing nature and natural charisma is exactly what led her to bond with her underclassmen friends, Ian Garcia, Madison Marin, and Bailey Mitchell-Warren, who cheered enthusiastically as she walked across the stage.

García’s on-campus roles such as becoming a teacher’s assistant for Dr. Atkins, professor of Spanish and Latin American Language, allowed her to cement her place on campus.

“From her just sitting in the chair and me just going ​‘Hi, prof,’ probably already thought we were friends,” Marin said recalling the instant connection she made with García.

Mitchell-Warren remembered her first encounter with García in the dining hall, complimenting her sweatshirt with the character Misa Amane from the anime Death Note.

“Ever since then, I kind of forced my way into her life, and I introduced her to all my other friends,” Mitchell-Warren said with a grin.

Being far away from home, García said that she suffered from depression and suicidal thoughts but that her friends gave her a reliable support system, along with therapy.

The friend group won’t be saying goodbye to Garcia though, with her returning in the fall to get her masters.

Through her four years, García learned some lessons that she’s especially keen to pass onto fellow international students.

“Learn how to drive and learn how to cook, because food is way different from home wherever you come from,” she said. ​“And it is very important that you figure out transportation for yourself because public transportation is bad and not everyone is going to give you a ride.”