2025 CCAS Graduation Celebrations
With faculty, friends and family looking on, the Class of 2025 was celebrated for their achievement during four days of commencement festivities, including the CCAS hooding ceremony at Lisner Auditorium and the master's and undergraduate celebrations at the Charles E. Smith Center. This year's CCAS graduating class was made up of over 2,000 students, including undergraduates and those receiving their doctoral and master's degrees.
The university-wide Commencement took place on the National Mall, against the iconic backdrop of the National Monument. Former CCAS criminal justice major Jonquel Jones, BA '19, a GW basketball Hall of Famer and rights advocate, delivered the keynote address. The Commencement's student speaker was Natalia Anzaldúa, a graduate of the occupational therapy doctoral program in GW's School of Medicine and Health Sciences.
Words from Our Speakers
Meredith Durand, Distinguished Master's Degree Scholar Award
"Keep doing the work, keep showing up, find the ways you can support the people and communities around you, and find the ones that will be there for you in return."
Antonio López, Associate Professor of English
“Your creativity, self-acceptance, initiative, self-confidence, courage, self-advocacy, defiance. How those things, which we also call knowledge and truth, turn into success in the years to come is a story you yourself have to tell."
Quinn Stefan, Distinguished Scholar
"I love the human need to keep advancing and to keep learning. Research is important. Learning is important."
Sone-Seeré Burrell, Internship Coordinator, Assistant Professor
“Ride the waves as they come, celebrate the victories, learn from the mistakes, dust yourself off, drink your water, mind your business, give everything but 'up', and carpe that diem like the trailblazers you are!"
Paul Wahlbeck, Dean, Columbian College of Arts and Sciences
“The power of knowledge can be transformative and life-changing. Your expertise, your empathy, your ability to think critically, to make evidence-based decisions, to analyze and reflect, to value diverse, cross-cultural perspectives — these are skills you should not leave behind as you walk out these doors."
Chad Heap, Associate Dean for Graduate Studies
“Before you move on to the next challenge, take a moment to celebrate yourself and everything you've done to earn the title 'Doctor.'"
Peter Loge, SMPA Director, Associate Professor of Media and Public Affairs
“You will walk out of here into an unprecedented time and you will make sense of it. You will build and be a part of communities, shape and be shaped by your world, you will make the unprecedented the predictable.”
Celebration Snapshots
Faculty Awards
- Robert W. Kenny Prize for Innovation in Teaching of Introductory Courses
The Robert W. Kenny Prize for Innovation in Teaching of Introductory Courses is awarded annually to a faculty member in the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences who has shown innovation, creativity, and originality in teaching an introductory course in the Arts and Sciences. The recipient, who is among the most talented of our teachers, teaches an introductory or basic course during the academic year in a novel and innovative way. Professors receiving this award have encouraged their students to think differently, allowing them to take advantage of their academic experience at the George Washington University. The Kenny Prize honors former Dean Robert Kenny and his special dedication to stimulating experiences for GW students and his emphasis on the importance of introductory courses as students undertake their studies in the liberal arts and sciences.
- Nabila Hijazi, Assistant Teaching Professor of Writing
- Brad Marshall, Teaching Professor of French
- Columbian Prize for Teaching and Mentoring Advanced Undergraduate Students
The Columbian Prize for Teaching and Mentoring Advanced Undergraduate Students is awarded to a regular, full- time faculty member in the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences who demonstrates excellence in the teaching and mentoring of advanced undergraduate students. With this prize, we recognize exceptional achievement in one or more of the following areas of work: teaching an advanced undergraduate course, advising students, directing undergraduate research, designing a capstone experience, or mentoring students who achieve departmental honors and other distinctions.
- Eric Grynaviski, Associate Professor of Political Science and International Affairs
- Joel B. Lewis, Professor of Mathematics
- Award for Excellence in the Mentoring of Master's Students
The Award for Excellence in Graduate Faculty Mentoring is given to a faculty member nominated by graduate students in the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences. Mentoring and advising are crucial to the intellectual life and career trajectories of graduate students across the arts, sciences and professions. A good mentor is a source of wisdom and expertise, an inspiring role model, a compassionate critic, a sounding board, an advocate and a career counselor.
- Desmond Goss, Assistant Professor of Sociology
- Award for Excellence in the Mentoring of Doctoral Students
The Award for Excellence in the Mentoring of Doctoral Students is given to a faculty member nominated by students in the PhD and PsyD programs of the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences. Mentoring and advising are crucial to the intellectual life and career trajectories of doctoral students across the arts, sciences and professions. A good mentor is a source of wisdom and expertise, an inspiring role model, a compassionate critic, a sounding board, an advocate and a career counselor.
- Holly Dugan, Associate Professor of English
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