June 18, 2011
Greenville, RI
MEC Graduation Day 2011

On Saturday, June 18th, the Mater Ecclesiae College campus buzzed with excitement as nineteen seniors received their B.A. in Religious and Pastoral studies.

Sunshine greeted family, friends, benefactors, faculty, staff and students, who gathered in the chapel for a ten o’clock Baccalaureate Mass, presided over by Bishop Louis Gelineau, Bishop Emeritus of the Diocese of Providence. In his homily, His Excellency reflected on the value of both giving and receiving encouragement while pursuing one’s life goals, such as completing a college education. He then encouraged the graduates to bring all that they had received in their four years at MEC to their new missions at the service of the Church.  

Following the beautiful Eucharistic Celebration, guests gathered outdoors in the Grotto of Our Lady to wait for Bishop Gelineau to lead out the Academic Procession that opened the commencement ceremony.  The bishop was followed by President Luly Fernández, Ph.D.; Dean of Academic Affairs Patricia Camarero Ph.D.: Commencement Speaker Dermott Mullan, Ph.D.; and the graduating class.  Following the Bishop’s opening prayer, the president welcomed all those gathered for the event and thanked the organizers.  Special mention was made of the board members, both past and present, in attendance, including Bishop Gelineau, Louise O’Callahan, Caroline Wilders and Dr. Mullan. Administrators, faculty and staff were also thanked for their ongoing commitment to the students. Before introducing the speaker, Dr. Fernández announced the board’s recent election of a new college president, Dr. Deb Bauer, and presented the new director of student affairs, Cecilia Azcunaga. 

Dr. Mullan, a professor and researcher in the area of astrophysics with the Bartol Research Institute at the University of Delaware, immediately proceeded to win the crowd’s laughter by sharing his first experiences with the consecrated women of Regnum Christi and Mater Ecclesiae College. Drawing on imagery from the field of astrophysics, he encouraged the audience to learn from the natural sciences, proposing that just as the failure of classical physics to explain the brilliant energy of the sun required quantum physics, the contemporary world requires a new approach to catechetics.  He then conveyed a personal conviction that the sacred space created by consecrated persons, so evident to him and others when they hear the students singing at Mass in the Mater Ecclesiae College Chapel, is also reaching out in a new and non-confrontational way to others and drawing them into contact with God.  He concluded by thanking the students for responding “Yes” to God’s call.

With the conclusion of the commencement address, the long-awaited moment had arrived.  At the formal request of Dean Camarero, President Fernández formally pronounced the words of conferral and the students came forward to the sound of great applause in order to receive their diplomas and a hug of congratulations from both the dean and president.  When all had received their diplomas, the graduates stood to a warm round of applause from the crowd and shifted their tassels.

Then, in an event that had carefully been kept off the official program, President Fernández was presented with a bouquet of flowers while words of gratitude were read out on behalf of all the consecrated women who had benefited from her dedication and warm concern over the past 15 years.  Following the ensuing round of applause, the graduates broke into song, singing two songs as a tribute of gratitude to the Lord before processing out behind the bishop, academic officers and faculty to the music of Ave Maria.

 

Congratulations Graduates! We are proud of you!