Congratulations to the graduates of the University of Delaware’s Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics! It was a wonderful week celebrating our more than 1,130 Lerner College graduates from the Class of 2023 including undergraduate, master’s and doctoral students.
Convocation for master’s students was held on Monday, May 22 and the Doctoral hooding for our Ph.D. program graduates was held on Thursday, May 25. Convocation for undergraduate students from the Lerner College Class of 2023 was held on Friday, May 26.
Lerner alumna Mary Ellen Payne, who earned a bachelor of science degree in 1978 and an MBA degree in 1980 and is a retired senior vice president of marketing and sales with Verizon Communications, served as the master’s Convocation speaker. Lerner alum Jeffrey L. Herbert, Class of 2001, senior executive vice president, general counsel and head of the legal division at Apple Bank, served as the undergraduate Convocation speaker.
The Class of 2023 Lerner Master’s and Undergraduate Convocations live stream recordings, in addition to recordings from other UD ceremonies, can be found on UD Capture Space. On Saturday, the Commencement for the entire UD Class of 2023 was held in the Delaware Stadium with Mae C. Jemison as the Commencement speaker. The Convocation and Commencement programs can be found here.
“All of your experiences here at UD provided you with skills that will add up to a lifetime of success and equip you to contribute to businesses and society,” said Lerner College Dean Bruce Weber in his last Commencement address to the graduates as his 12-year tenure as dean concludes June 30, 2023.
“I also want to stress that you have already learned a most important life lesson: that while inequities and injustices persist around us, we can be the difference by calling it out, being allies and living our values to make a more equitable and just world.
“As you begin to take the next steps in your careers, I encourage you to remember that you are Lifelong Lerners,” he continued. “Stay connected to the Lerner College and UD, find a project or program here that you are passionate about and volunteer. Help unite the academic mission of Lerner to the practical needs of the business community and society as a whole.”
This year, we celebrate 24 members of the Class of 2023 who were nominated by faculty and staff at the Lerner College for their outstanding contributions throughout their time at the College. Last year, we honored distinguished members of the Class of 2022 on the Lerner website and social media through our Lifelong Lerner: Class of 2022 series.
These students have shown incredible resilience, maturity and spirit while adjusting to the many unexpected changes that they have encountered in their final years at UD. Each installment of this series shares the story of an outstanding member of this class, showcasing their achievements, experiences at UD and what it means to be a Blue Hen.