Scenes from Commencement 2019

The 318th Yale Commencement ceremony took place on Monday, May 20, 2019 on Old Campus.

May 20, 2019 1 min read

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President Peter Salovey delivers opening remarks.
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University Chaplain Sharon Kugler offers the traditional invocation.
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Yale College Dean Marvin Chun delivers remarks.
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Students receive their diplomas.
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In addition to students receiving their diplomas, 11 individuals who have excelled in their fields were also awarded honorary degrees.
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Chimamanda Adichie ’08 M.A. — who delivered the keynote address on Class Day — receives her honorary degree.
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Harvard President Lawrence S. Bacow
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Former Secretary of State James A. Baker III
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Artist Sheila Hicks
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Actress and choreographer Carmen de Lavallade
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Professor of Classics at the University of Cambridge Mary Beard
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Global businessman and philanthropist Strive Masiyiwa
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Conservationist and elephant researcher Cynthia Moss
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PepsiCo CEO and Yale School of Management alumna Indra K. Nooyi
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Anti-death penalty advocate Sister Helen Prejean
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Feminist writer, speaker, and activist Gloria Steinem
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All university degrees are formally conferred during the Commencement ceremony on Old Campus. During the ceremony, the dean of Yale College and deans of the Graduate and professional schools formally present their approved candidates to the president. The president, in turn, confers the degrees and admits new graduates to each degree’s “rights and responsibilities.” This year’s ceremony took place on Monday, May 20.

In addition to students receiving their diplomas, 11 individuals who have excelled in their fields were also awarded honorary degrees.