UMass Amherst Class of 2020 Revels in Long-Awaited Commencement Celebration

AMHERST, Mass. – An in-person ceremony for undergraduate members of the University of Massachusetts Amherst Class of 2020 – long delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic – was held Sunday, Nov. 7 at the Mullins Center.

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Approximately 1,300 members of the Class of 2020, supported by 4,800 of their family members and friends, proceeded into the ceremony to the strains of “Olympic Fanfare” and “Pomp and Circumstance” performed by the UMass Concert Band.

Chancellor Kumble R. Subbaswamy told the graduates that a search of the archives revealed that they were the only class in the university’s nearly 160-year history to return to campus as alumni to attend their own Commencement ceremony. “We’re grateful for this opportunity to finally have the chance to honor you in-person,” he said. “You were deprived of the precious, final days of your college experience because of a once-in-a-century pandemic. You missed the opportunity to say goodbye or ‘see you later’ to friends and faculty with whom you’d grown close. And you were sent out into the world with even more uncertainty than most graduates. Your resolve and resilience are inspiring, and it’s appropriate we’re celebrating your commencement on this particular weekend. For this is a true Homecoming for all of you!”

The keynote address was given by Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Associate Justice and alumnus David A. Lowy ’83. Lowy was appointed to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court by Gov. Charlie Baker in 2016. He earned a bachelor of arts degree, cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, from UMass Amherst in 1983, and graduated magna cum laude from Boston University School of Law in 1987.

Lowy said, “My hope is that you, some grandchildren and great grandchildren of the Greatest Generation, who saved the free world, leave this arena with an understanding that you are the indispensable generation, charged with restoring civility and compromise in the arena of our democracy.”

He noted, “I come here today without a solution to the politics of anger or a formula to heal our nation’s wounds. Rather, what I would like to discuss this morning is the importance of listening and responding with civility to those with whom we don’t have much in common and with whom we don’t agree. And maybe through civility, and through an embrace of the principles of the First Amendment, we can begin a dialogue to round out the jagged edges of division.”

The associate justice said, “In short, civility means arguing with those with whom you disagree by challenging their ideas – not their very being. If everybody dismisses anyone who disagrees with them as uncivil, their ideas unworthy of consideration, then we've got an excuse to not listen to each other. Listen with your ears, and not your mouth. Care about what the speaker has to say. Practicing empathy is an important part of civility: recognizing that your opponent is a human being, like you, and trying to understand their perspective. And remember, as Jefferson tried to teach us, ‘every difference of opinion is not a difference of principle.’”

Student Speaker Grace Jung ’20. of Newton graduated from UMass Amherst with a degree in biochemistry and molecular biology. She is currently completing her master’s degree in biomedical sciences at Rutgers University with plans to attend dental school.

Jung told her fellow graduates, “To the best of our abilities, many of us applied to graduate programs or started jobs. Some worked directly on the front lines as healthcare workers, working through layers of PPE and the constant fear of bringing COVID back home to loved ones. Life became an intense physical and mental challenge, one we could never have imagined or prepared for. I am so proud of us for making it to this moment, because navigating this alone was often unimaginable. I felt that my tool kit did not have the tools necessary to deal with such adversity. That said, pandemic or no pandemic, these post-college months were always going to be different from the four years spent in our familiar little world in Amherst. We were going to have to pave paths for ourselves, relying on the various learning experiences and opportunities we’ve had as students here at UMass. Standing in front of you today, I can confidently say that we did, in fact, have the tools necessary to navigate our post-graduate world.”

Faculty Speaker Wilmore Webley ’00 MS, ’03 Ph.D. is an associate professor of microbiology and serves as associate dean for inclusion and engagement in the Graduate School.

Webley said, “I am so incredibly impressed by you! You inspire me! You represent the very best of all of us. Some people have declared that the world is going in the wrong direction and they are concerned about the future because kids today are just not up to the task. I completely disagree. I am very hopeful for the future. With scholars like you as my doctors, lawyers, nurses, engineers, researchers, political leaders, business leaders and industry innovators, we are in excellent hands. You have proven that you have tenacity, stick-to-itiveness, grit and creativity. You have defied the odds, and you have overcome, and you are victorious today.”

The ceremony also included remarks by UMass Trustee Mary Burns as well as recognition of the 21st Century Leaders and the Jack Welch Scholars. Face masks and observation of other current UMass COVID-19 protocols were required at the indoor event at the Mullins Center.

The approximately 6,600 graduates in the Class of 2020 were honored in May 2020 with a virtual celebration that featured salutes from nearly 30 prominent public and political figures, including actor Ben Affleck, TV host and political commentator Rachel Maddow, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, Gov. Charlie Baker, and U.S. Representatives Jim McGovern, Richard Neal and Ayanna Pressley. The virtual celebration page, which includes a feature video, has been viewed more 86,000 times, including more than 20,000 views since the virtual celebration first occurred on May 8, 2020.