Centenary University awarded degrees to 430 graduates at its 146^th commencement, which was held as three separate in-person ceremonies on campus to comply with outdoor gathering restrictions as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Bachelor’s and associate degree candidates received their degrees during two ceremonies today, while master’s and doctoral degree recipients were celebrated in person on Wednesday, May 5.

In keeping with the University’s Centenary Choice initiative, members of the Class of 2021 could “walk across the stage” at commencement in person or virtually, respecting the comfort level of each graduate. During the current academic year, Centenary Choice permitted the University’s students to attend classes in person on campus, online, or in a HyFlex format combining the two. The initiative has allowed Centenary students to design their classroom experience—and now their commencement—in a way that meets the individual comfort level of each person during the pandemic.

Aakash Shah, MD, an addiction and emergency room doctor at Hackensack Meridian Health (HMH), delivered the keynote address at both undergraduate ceremonies. A member of the medical team that treated the first COVID-19 patient diagnosed in New Jersey, Dr. Shah has helped to shape national healthcare policy in a supporting role with the Biden-Sanders Unity Task Force.

He urged the Class of 2021 to dedicate their heads, their hearts, and their hands to assisting others: “What is needed, is for us to put our head, our heart, and our hands in conversation to make a real, tangible difference in the lives of others…Centenary Class of 2021, today, you will begin to confront the complexity and uncertainty of this world in ways that none of us can anticipate. This year, more so than many before it, has made that clear.

“I do not know how you will respond. I do not know whether you will embrace hope and humility. I do not know whether you will bring your head, your heart, and your hands together to make a difference in the lives of others. I do not know whether you will pursue a life of the mind and the heart. I do not know whether you will make the change that you so very wish to in this world. For I know but one thing. It is in your hands.”