{"id":4907,"date":"2023-06-12T19:57:26","date_gmt":"2023-06-12T19:57:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/?p=4907"},"modified":"2025-03-21T10:17:55","modified_gmt":"2025-03-21T14:17:55","slug":"wilmington-universitys-class-of-2023","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/2023\/06\/12\/wilmington-universitys-class-of-2023\/","title":{"rendered":"Wilmington University\u2019s Class of 2023"},"content":{"rendered":"<style>.kadence-column4907_6e6c17-e9 > .kt-inside-inner-col{padding-right:var(--global-kb-spacing-lg, 3rem);padding-bottom:var(--global-kb-spacing-lg, 3rem);padding-left:var(--global-kb-spacing-lg, 3rem);}.kadence-column4907_6e6c17-e9 > .kt-inside-inner-col,.kadence-column4907_6e6c17-e9 > .kt-inside-inner-col:before{border-top-left-radius:0px;border-top-right-radius:0px;border-bottom-right-radius:0px;border-bottom-left-radius:0px;}.kadence-column4907_6e6c17-e9 > .kt-inside-inner-col{column-gap:var(--global-kb-gap-sm, 1rem);}.kadence-column4907_6e6c17-e9 > .kt-inside-inner-col{flex-direction:column;}.kadence-column4907_6e6c17-e9 > .kt-inside-inner-col > .aligncenter{width:100%;}.kadence-column4907_6e6c17-e9 > .kt-inside-inner-col:before{opacity:0.3;}.kadence-column4907_6e6c17-e9{position:relative;}@media all and (max-width: 1024px){.kadence-column4907_6e6c17-e9 > .kt-inside-inner-col{flex-direction:column;justify-content:center;}}@media all and (max-width: 991px){.kadence-column4907_6e6c17-e9 > .kt-inside-inner-col{flex-direction:column;justify-content:center;}}<\/style>\n<div class=\"wp-block-kadence-column kadence-column4907_6e6c17-e9 dynamic-main-col\"><div class=\"kt-inside-inner-col\">\n<p>On June 4, 2023, Wilmington University awarded more than 2,240 academic degrees during its 52nd Commencement ceremony at the Chase Center on the Riverfront in Wilmington, Delaware.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;Wilmington University\u2019s inspirational Class of 2023 achieved their academic goals amid professional responsibilities and personal commitments.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe offer sincere congratulations to our graduates,\u201d said Wilmington University President <strong>Dr. LaVerne Harmon<\/strong>. \u201cWe know they will embrace their communities and workplaces with renewed confidence and skills, and we look forward to learning about their future accomplishments.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Graduates ranging in age from 18 to 73 hailed from 54 countries, including Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America and South America. More than 2,500 completed their degrees entirely online. The online graduating student residing the furthest distance from Delaware lives in New Zealand, while one graduate traveled from Hawaii to attend. All graduates immediately became members of Wilmington University\u2019s Alumni Association, comprising 68,000 members.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Student commencement addresses depicted passion and persistence while being reflective of support and guidance from families, friends, faculty and staff.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"speakers\">Speakers<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Five ceremonies represented each WilmU college: Speakers included:&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Ms. Jill Agosto<\/strong>: M.S.N. in Nursing Leadership with an Educator concentration (College of Health Professions &amp; Natural Sciences)&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Dr. Visty P. Dalal<\/strong>: Doctor of Education (College of Education &amp; Liberal Arts)&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Victoria Mengoh<\/strong>: Master of Science in Information Systems Technologies (College of Technology)&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Dr. Dawn Paramore<\/strong><strong>: <\/strong>Doctor of Social Science in Prevention Science (College of Social &amp; Behavioral Sciences)&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Dr. Ashley Thomas<\/strong>: Doctor of Business Administration (College of Business)&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n<style>.kb-image4907_a0954f-df .kb-image-has-overlay:after{opacity:0.3;}<\/style>\n<div class=\"wp-block-kadence-image kb-image4907_a0954f-df\"><figure class=\"alignleft size-medium\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"250\" height=\"247\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/DawnParamore-250x247.png\" alt=\"Dr. Dawn Paramore\" class=\"kb-img wp-image-4921\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/DawnParamore-250x247.png 250w, https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/DawnParamore-300x296.png 300w, https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/DawnParamore.png 367w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 250px) 100vw, 250px\" \/><figcaption>Dr. Dawn Paramore<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Dr. Dawn Paramore<\/strong>, who graduated with a Doctor of Social Science in Prevention Science, represented WilmU\u2019s College of Social &amp; Behavioral Sciences class. The Philadelphia, Pennsylvania native is a licensed mental health therapist and the CEO of three mental health-related nonprofits. She is passionate about mental health issues and the importance of bringing awareness to children and their families.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dr. Paramore reflected on the challenging journeys she and her fellow graduates endured while pursuing their degrees. \u201cMany of us dared to dream of becoming college graduates while learning to navigate this thing called life,\u201d she said. \u201cWe are single mothers and fathers. We\u2019re wives, husbands, sisters, brothers, daughters and sons. Some of us returned after years of taking a break, while others plowed through academia, obtaining consecutive undergraduate and graduate degrees. \u2026 The same grit and determination that got us here will usher us through challenges yet to be seen within our careers.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignwide wu-blockquote-row is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-ad2f72ca wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote wu-blockquote-simple is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cI tell my students to write from their hearts, which is just what I did with my book,\u201d she says. \u201cI want to give people hope that they can be crazy in love.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n<cite>\u2014 Dr. Dawn Paramore<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<style>.kb-image4907_20e34f-c5 .kb-image-has-overlay:after{opacity:0.3;}<\/style>\n<div class=\"wp-block-kadence-image kb-image4907_20e34f-c5\"><figure class=\"alignright size-medium\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"250\" height=\"246\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/JillAgosto-250x246.png\" alt=\"Jill Agosto\" class=\"kb-img wp-image-4925\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/JillAgosto-250x246.png 250w, https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/JillAgosto-300x295.png 300w, https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/JillAgosto.png 389w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 250px) 100vw, 250px\" \/><figcaption>Jill Agosto<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Jill Agosto<\/strong> represented the College of Health Professions &amp; Natural Sciences class. Ms. Agosto serves her community and has received multiple Daisy nominations, Star nominations for Excellence in Patient Care and Teamwork and a Torch Award for Excellence in Nursing Care. At WilmU, she graduated summa cum laude with a B.S.N. and then an M.S.N. in Nursing Leadership with an Educator concentration.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe are all here because we never gave up,\u201d Ms. Agosto said. \u201cWe never faltered in difficult times. Did we experience failures and struggles in our academic careers? Yes, absolutely. Those failures and difficulties do not define us. What defines us is what we did with those failures.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignwide wu-blockquote-row is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-ad2f72ca wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote wu-blockquote-simple is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cWe are all here because we never gave up.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<cite>\u2014 Jill Agosto<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<style>.kb-image4907_c790cf-d1 .kb-image-has-overlay:after{opacity:0.3;}<\/style>\n<div class=\"wp-block-kadence-image kb-image4907_c790cf-d1\"><figure class=\"alignleft size-medium\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"225\" height=\"250\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/DrVistyDalal-225x250.png\" alt=\"Dr Visty Dalal\" class=\"kb-img wp-image-4927\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/DrVistyDalal-225x250.png 225w, https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/DrVistyDalal-271x300.png 271w, https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/DrVistyDalal.png 377w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px\" \/><figcaption>Dr .Visty Dalal<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cAll of us began our quest for knowledge and education from different regions of this wonderful country, ultimately making our way to Wilmington University,\u201d said Speaker <strong>Dr. Visty P. Dalal<\/strong> during the College of Education &amp; Liberal Arts ceremony. \u201cThe dedicated faculty left no stone unturned in ensuring that each one of us got the best the program could offer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThey took great pride to see us advance in our thinking and comprehension of the challenges that lie ahead in academia today. \u2026 We are all better equipped and prepared today because of our training and education at Wilmington University. Now, the responsibility lies with us to forward our thinking for the betterment of society and for those who come after us.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignwide wu-blockquote-row is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-ad2f72ca wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote wu-blockquote-simple is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cWe are all better equipped and prepared today because of our training and education at Wilmington University.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<cite>\u2014 Dr. Visty P. Dalal<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Wilmington University congratulates the Class of 2023.&nbsp;<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Check out our Commencement <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=v-YU7PtDn6Q\"><strong>highlights video<\/strong><\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/photos.wilmu.edu\/p59710793\"><strong>ceremony photos<\/strong><\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On June 4, 2023, Wilmington University awarded more than 2,240 academic degrees during its 52nd Commencement ceremony at the Chase Center on the Riverfront in&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":4913,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2,68],"tags":[357,449,14,15],"class_list":["post-4907","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academic-news","category-events","tag-commencement","tag-graduation","tag-wilmington-university","tag-wilmu"],"acf":[],"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":2,"label":"ACADEMIC NEWS"},{"value":68,"label":"EVENTS"}],"post_tag":[{"value":357,"label":"Commencement"},{"value":449,"label":"graduation"},{"value":14,"label":"Wilmington University"},{"value":15,"label":"WilmU"}]},"featured_image_src_large":["https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Commencement_FeaturedImage_06-23-web-480x480.jpg",480,480,true],"author_info":{"display_name":"Rachel Marchione","author_link":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/author\/rachel\/"},"comment_info":0,"category_info":[{"term_id":2,"name":"ACADEMIC NEWS","slug":"academic-news","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":559,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":460,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":2,"category_count":460,"category_description":"","cat_name":"ACADEMIC NEWS","category_nicename":"academic-news","category_parent":0},{"term_id":68,"name":"EVENTS","slug":"events","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":625,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":45,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":68,"category_count":45,"category_description":"","cat_name":"EVENTS","category_nicename":"events","category_parent":0}],"tag_info":[{"term_id":357,"name":"Commencement","slug":"commencement","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":914,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":6,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":449,"name":"graduation","slug":"graduation","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1006,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":3,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":14,"name":"Wilmington University","slug":"wilmington-university","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":571,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":357,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":15,"name":"WilmU","slug":"wilmu","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":572,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":291,"filter":"raw"}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4907","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4907"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4907\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17418,"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4907\/revisions\/17418"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4913"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4907"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4907"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.wilmu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4907"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}