Nearly 400 degrees and certificates will be conferred at the 54th annual Kankakee Community College commencement ceremony at 10 a.m., Saturday, May 13, in the George H. Ryan Gymnasium in the college’s Activities Building. For guests needing assistance or special accommodations, entry begins at 8:45 a.m. General seating will take place from 9 – 9:55 a.m. Guests are asked not to bring balloons or other large items that could obstruct the view of others. The college also will have an overflow room where the ceremony will be streamed live.
“This graduation is unique because this is my first real graduation,” said Gabriel Emerson of Beaverville. “I graduated from high school in 2020, right when the pandemic hit, so this is a huge step-up from grabbing my diploma off a table that was on a huge flat-bed trailer.”
“I just turned 50 last year, and to finally be graduating from college is a dream come true,” said Laretta Graves, who will receive an Associate in Arts transfer degree. “This has been one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences of my life,” Graves noted. “I plan to continue with my goals and dreams by attending GSU (Governors State University) in the fall, majoring in pre-clinical psychology, with a minor in philosophy. I will miss KCC, though, as it has become a place where I have further empowered myself and grown. Here’s to 50 more years!”
A first-generation college student, Noah Stack has a simple message for his mom, “I’d like to give a special thank you to my mother, Jeanne Stack, for her continued support, encouragement, and strength as a solo-mother for the past three years.”
“This has been a long journey for me,” said Adlene Noble of Kankakee. “These past couple of years, I took the initiative to focus and get the last few classes I needed done to obtain my associate’s degree. I am a first-generation graduate,” said Noble. “I’m so proud of myself for this accomplishment.”
The speaker at KCC’s ceremony will be a 2012 graduate Eric Peterson, who is CEO and founder at Project Headspace and Timing, a non-profit that assists veterans. He is a U.S. military veteran, who served in Afghanistan with the Illinois Army National Guard. Peterson also has worked as a paramedic and a private investigator.
Three students will be honored as members of the All-Illinois Academic Team, a special recognition based on outstanding academic performance and service to the college and community. They are Julie Anco of Frankfort, Halie Kohl of Herscher, and Thomas Daily of St. Anne.
The KCC Outstanding Faculty Member Awards for 2023 will be presented to Kristine Salmons, professor for the Electrical Engineering Technology Program, and Dana Corlett-Bryant, adjunct professor for English and speech programs.
The recipient of the John M. Fulton Distinguished Alumni Award is Tocarra Eldridge-Robinson, a 2003 KCC graduate who is founder and executive director of Still I Rise, a nonprofit organization founded in 2014.
The ceremony will stream live at commencement.kcc.edu<https://commencement.kcc.edu/>. Social media users can use #KCCgrad2023 to congratulate graduates.