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This year’s Commencement for Mount Saint Mary’s University at the Shrine Auditorium was the first held there since 2016, and the jubilant atmosphere was only increased by the expressions of love and support from the audience that reverberated throughout the room, including sustained screams rivaling a major sporting event, several “You did it!” and even a proud “That’s my sister!” were heard by all in attendance. Daniel Prosterman, PhD, interim provost and vice president for academic affairs, served as the emcee over the day’s proceedings, and he encouraged the happy crowd to cheer and even welcomed interruptions. It’s a good thing he did, for the enthusiasm could not be contained.

Graduate ceremony

The graduate degrees were awarded in the morning ceremony, and the student speaker, Millie Baleva Wilson, received her master’s in nursing. In her speech, she referenced the world-renowned Roy Adaptation Model developed by Sister Calista Roy, CJS, ’63, and connected it to her fellow graduates by encouraging them to expand the “how” of their vocation to the “why,” in the same way nurses are taught to approach their patients holistically and not just view them as their symptoms or ailments.

“This broader understanding of yourself and your community is not an accident,” Baleva Wilson said. “It is in the DNA of Mount Saint Mary’s University and the degree you earn today.” In encouraging her graduating class to make its mark, she added, “Our influence on the word is massive, our population diverse and our problems often overwhelming.”

Patrick Mahoney, the graduate commencement speaker, currently serves as CEO of the Boys and Girls Club of Metro Los Angeles. Mahoney shared four lessons that changed his life as his advice to the graduating class: 1) Find your “why;” 2) know your values; 3) practice gratitude and 4) live for today. He encouraged everyone to remember that it’s always possible to hit their personal “reset button” if they need to course correct the direction of their lives.

“Graduates, I am so excited for you to start the next chapter in your story. As you go out into the world, I urge you to find your ‘why,’ to use your voice, to give humanity the benefit of the doubt, and to be the change you want to see, because changing the world starts with you.” 

Undergraduate ceremony

Following the welcome by Prosterman and President McElaney-Johnson, two special awards were presented by Sister Barbara Anne Stowasser, CJS, ’63, secretary of the Board of Trustees, and President McElaney-Johnson. Monsignor Clement Connolly, who served on the board for many years starting in 2003, was granted trustee emeritus in recognition of his distinguished service, vision and dedication. He has been an integral part of the University’s success over the course of his service to the Mount.

Eleanor Siebert, PhD, received the Carondelet Medal, the University’s highest honor. Siebert was the chair of the Mount’s physical sciences and mathematics department before becoming provost and academic vice president in 2004. While she retired in 2013 from her full-time career with the University after 39 years, she has remained a vital part of the community, particularly as the lead researcher for the Mount’s groundbreaking Report on the Status of Women and Girls in California.™

Two “student greeters” represented the graduating classes. Jessica “Jess” Pappas received her bachelor’s in liberal arts from the Weekend/Evening & Online College. Pappas enrolled in her first class at the Mount in January ’21 after more than 21 years away from higher education, and says that her class is proof that “it’s never too late to pursue your dreams and finish what you started. As graduates, we represent integrity, commitment, resiliency, tenacity, courage and strength. Never forget your greatness and remember who you are!” 

One of two Unstoppable Scholars awarded earlier this year, Dalilah Valencia received her degree in mathematics. She spoke about all the resilience her class had shown to persevere through the changes brought about by the Getty Fire and the pandemic and urged them to recall the unexpected challenges they faced during these years that still culminated in their degrees whenever they need resilience in the years ahead.

“Let us not be discouraged by setbacks, but instead, let us use them as opportunities to grow and learn,” she said. “There will be times when things don't go your way, when you face obstacles that seem unconquerable, and when you feel like giving up. But it is in these moments that resilience becomes critical. It’s what separates those who succeed from those who don't. It's what allows us to keep going when we feel like we can't.”

The Commencement speaker was our very own Simone Campbell, SSS, ’69, who received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the top civilian honor, in July 2022 for her justice work. Famous for the Nuns of the Bus tour that she launched in 2021, she and other sisters went on nationwide tours to promote various initiatives, such as the call to vote, tax policies, immigration reform, Medicaid expansion and economic justice.

Sister Simone spoke of a British researcher, Scilla Elworthy, who researched corporations with strong women leadership and decision-makers versus those without, and the five “superpowers” women in leadership positions inherently possess that made a difference: 1) greater inclusivity; 2) superior listening skills, with the ability to remember what their colleagues thought were different from their own views. Men, until they’re in the presence of women leaders who make such identifications, were unable to make this distinction; 3) ability to see the interconnections of issues and concerns; 4) compassion, defined as having empathy that leads to action; and 5) understanding regeneration, that is, having the ability to understand the cycles in a movement or organization and judging what programs can flourish and what may have, at least for the moment, have run its course.

“Wherever you end up, you bring the superpowers that our world greatly needs,” said Sister Simone. “You bring the power to be inclusive and break racial, ethnic and gender barriers to see something new. You have the intersection of heart and head that our world desperately needs.”

Sister Simone has spent a career fighting for those who were in desperate need of others’ hearts and heads, and upon the conclusion of her speech, Sister Barbara Ann and President McElaney-Johnson bestowed her with an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters, which is “conferred to persons of distinguished leadership and service to their community, and exceptional achievements consonant with the University’s mission.”

The common thread from the speakers were a nod to the attributes that lead the students to the awarding of their degrees: hard work, perseverance and resiliency. They were encouraged to remember the difficulties they endured on their way to this celebratory day so that they will be armed with confidence in their abilities to overcome obstacles when future trials crop up.

All graduates would do well to keep Sister Simone’s final words in mind: “Celebrate this commencement well! Then step into this turbulent world. We need your leadership and are counting on your commitment and creativity. You are the gift we have been waiting for — let us begin!”

Others participating in the day’s proceedings: Laura Gomez, director of music ministry and co-assistant director of Campus Ministry and Spirituality, for providing the graduate invocation and Gaile Krause, co-assistant director of Campus Ministry and Spirituality for providing the invocation as well as the blessing for the undergraduates; Sister Barbara Anne also presented the official proclamation of the degrees for both graduate and undergraduate ceremonies; Rosa White ’91, president of the Alumnae Association, welcomed this year’s new members to the association.