Ready to take on the world
Published:
Central Connecticut State University hosted two outdoor commencement ceremonies on May 16 at Arute Field. More than 2,200 students, including students eligible to graduate in December, participated.
Specifically, 1,102 graduate and undergraduate students graduated from the School of Education, the School of Engineering, Science, and Technology and the College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences; and 1,123 graduate and undergraduate students graduated from the Carol A. Ammon College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences and the School of Business.
According to the Office of the Registrar, 94.6 percent of this year’s graduating class live in Connecticut. Beyond Connecticut’s borders, the Class of 2026 represents 24 states and 14 countries.
The afternoon ceremony ended with a second dash of excitement when graduate Joel Villalta-Corcino proposed to his girlfriend, Caitlyn Vicenzi. After dropping to one knee, Rodriguez popped the question and Vicenzi replied with an enthusiastic yes. The happy couple is from Waterbury.
The speakers
Central President Zulma R. Toro and Sophia Jappinen, a member of the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities Board of Regents, addressed the Class of 2026, along with guest speaker Dr. Brian K. Fowler.
In her remarks Toro said, “Members of the 2026 Central Graduating Class, you are stepping into a world that will continue to evolve in ways that we cannot fully predict. But you are ready for it. You have done more than earn a degree — you have developed the resilience, curiosity, and skills to navigate what comes next.”
She added, “As I look at you today, I see a generation of Blue Devils prepared to usher in a new era of understanding and sensibility.”
Fowler, a cardiology fellow at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, is a 2011 graduate of Central, where he earned his Bachelor of Arts in Communication and played for the Blue Devils football team as running back. He went on to receive his medical degree from Ohio State University College of Medicine and completed his residency at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.
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