Sunday, Oct. 10, the College of William and Mary hosted two in-person commencement ceremonies for the Class of 2020, whose commencement ceremonies were virtual last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The ceremony included the conferring of honorary degrees, remarks from College officials and Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Dr. Anthony Fauci and the graduation procession and announcement of degrees.
Though the Class of 2020 graduated virtually over a year ago, many returned for Homecoming and the commencement ceremony. College Chancellor Robert Gates ’65 remarked on the long span of time between virtual graduation in May 2020 and in-person commencement.
“To the Class of 2020, congratulations,” Gates said. “The final paper was submitted, the final exam taken, 16 months ago. Unlike every other generation of William and Mary graduates to come before you, the Class of 2020 has already begun new jobs and graduate programs. And you’ve done so at a time when it’s hard to see what will happen in the next month, much less the years and decades to come. All I can say is, it’s about time we got around to celebrating together.”
Along with a virtual graduation ceremony, the Class of 2020 also completed their final semester virtually, as the College adapted to online classes following March 2020.
“You completed your degrees under the most trying circumstances,” College Rector John Littel said. “Your resilience, coupled with the commitment and hard work of our faculty and staff, got you to this point. Be proud and ever-grateful to those who supported you for this remarkable achievement.”
“You completed your degrees under the most trying circumstances,” College Rector John Littel said. “Your resilience, coupled with the commitment and hard work of our faculty and staff, got you to this point. Be proud and ever-grateful to those who supported you for this remarkable achievement.”
The commencement ceremony also conferred honorary degrees from the College to three recipients. Along with Dr. Anthony Fauci, Dr. Thomas Lovejoy, an expert in biodiversity and conservation, and Donald Patten, lawyer and former rector of the College, were honored.
Lovejoy, whose expertise served as the foundation for the program “Nature” on PBS, was recognized for his work in advocacy and service. Provost Peggy Agouris noted that the College has been increasing its work on biodiversity with the creation of the Institute for Integrative Conservation.
“Due to him and his efforts, we have created all these opportunities for the world to be engaged in this issue, for universities to conduct research to bring new minds into this question and for William and Mary to see our efforts in that area crowned by the creation of the Institute for Integrative Conservation, and that deserves recognition in many ways,” Agouris said.
Lovejoy urged graduates to remember the environment in all their future decisions.
“I would hope that each of you, as you go forward from William and Mary and pursue your lives, that part of it will always be anchored in securing a better environment for future generations,” Lovejoy said.
Patten, whose law practice helped many workers get compensation for asbestos-related injuries, was honored in part by former College President Taylor W. Reveley III.
“In my judgment, Don has lived a life of very significant accomplishment and a life rich with service to others,” Reveley said.
Fauci, who was given his honorary degree earlier this fall, spoke to the Class of 2020 virtually, through a pre-recorded video. He delivered a message of perseverance and hope for the College’s students.
“No students dating back over 100 years since the historic influenza pandemic of 1918 have had this level of disruption to their lives during their student years,” Fauci said. “Furthermore, the world that you entered as you left this beautiful campus has changed dramatically. I know that the adjustments you have made in our COVID world are substantial. However, what I have heard of how you have responded to the pandemic gives me confidence that you will adjust and thrive.”
Following Fauci’s remarks, Kate Donati ’20 delivered a speech on the College’s traditions and community, highlighting the path of students from Convocation to Commencement.
“We are engrained in William and Mary tradition from those first few steps, and the subsequent 3,000 high-fives we shared with strangers,” Donati said. “And I don’t know about you, but for me, Convocation was the first time that I ever felt like I truly belonged somewhere. I didn’t feel simply tolerated, but embraced for who I was, and it’s that feeling that bonds us all together, both to each other and to this place.”
Donati spoke on the care that students have for the College’s community and campus, including reform efforts by student activists.
“Caring can and does look like tough love,” Donati said. “Sometimes it looks like taking a hard look at this place and forging new paths, striving to make changes that we know will set the next class, and the endless ones after that, up for the greatest success. Because we have all seen just how beautiful this community can be, and I have yet to meet anyone who has ever set foot on our campus who isn’t eager to preserve that for the next generation.”
Even 16 months after the original event, Donati’s speech anchored the Class of 2020 to their commencement ceremony and the College community.
“I can think of no place I would rather have prepare me for the journey of what is to come, than the place where I got to learn from my peers what it means to care for each other and for myself, and what it means to be brave every single day,” Donati said.
