Donning a cap and gown on May 5 was especially meaningful for the undergraduate members of the Class of 2024. The pandemic had stolen from them their high school graduation ceremonies, and they arrived at UD hungry for ways to create community.
Biology major Rihanna Domingos spoke to her class at commencement about how happy she was to see, in her first days on campus, students coming together on the Central Mall to laugh, play and blast music from speakers while staggered 6 feet apart.
“We did not let that quarantine and COVID define us,” she said. “We did not let our fear of interacting with people stop us from making memories. That is something I appreciate about our class. In times that were difficult, upsetting and even so depressing, we were able to find ways to have small, joyful moments — like that day.”
The University awarded approximately 1,710 undergraduate degrees, an all-time high, and during three ceremonies that weekend conferred nearly 2,170 degrees.
Domingos invited her classmates to congratulate one another. Around UD Arena, students turned to one another and offered fist bumps, smiles and hugs.
“Let us not let the memories that we formed here just remain here,” she said, “but let us continue to grow in them.”
photo by Hayden Parsons