Speakers announced for 2025 undergraduate and graduate Commencement ceremonies
McDaniel College announces Commencement speakers for the 2025 undergraduate and graduate ceremonies. Military and business leader Linda L. Singh serves as the speaker for the Undergraduate Commencement Ceremony on Friday, May 23, while Associate Professor of Counseling Simeon K. Schlossberg will provide remarks during the Graduate Commencement Ceremony on Saturday, May 17. Both ceremonies take place in Gill Center. More information is available at mcdaniel.edu/Commencement.
Linda L. Singh
McDaniel College announces 2025 Commencement speakers for both the undergraduate and graduate ceremonies.
The college’s 155th Undergraduate Commencement Ceremony will be held Friday, May 23, at 1 p.m. with approximately 350 bachelor’s degrees expected to be awarded and the Graduate Commencement Ceremony is set for Saturday, May 17, at 11 a.m. with nearly 200 master’s degrees to be conferred. Both ceremonies take place in Gill Center.
Military and business leader Linda L. Singh serves as the speaker for the undergraduate ceremony.
The first African American and first woman Adjutant General (retired) of the Maryland National Guard, she is the founder of Kaleidoscope Affect LLC, a firm providing leadership development, management consulting, and strategic advisory services.
Simeon Schlossberg
She has earned numerous accolades and is the author of the Amazon bestseller, “Moments of Choice: My Path to Leadership,” a memoir about how she rose from humble beginnings and hardship, enduring abuse and homelessness, to positions of leadership, and “What’s in Your Box? Designing the Life You Want,” which challenges others to be open-minded to accomplish success and design the life they want.
Simeon K. Schlossberg, associate professor of Counseling at McDaniel College, provides remarks during the graduate ceremony.
Schlossberg, who joined the faculty at McDaniel in 1997, has also taught courses in the college’s undergraduate Education department and served as a consultant for Target Community & Educational Services, Inc., in conjunction with the college’s Master of Science in Human Services Management.
He is the founder and director of Blue Chair Group, a private clinical practice in Lutherville, Maryland, offering individual and family therapy and couples counseling.
Live video streams of both ceremonies will be available on Commencement day by visiting the Commencement webpage.
Special Awards
Special awards are also presented during McDaniel’s Commencement ceremonies. Award winners are not revealed until the ceremonies. These awards include:
- Undergraduate student awards at the May 23 Undergraduate Commencement Ceremony: Argonaut Award, given to the graduating senior with the highest cumulative grade-point average, and The Edith Farr Ridington Writing Award for the best paper by a graduating senior.
- Graduate student awards at the May 17 Graduate Commencement Ceremony: The B. Jill Brooks Hodge Professional Development Award, given to a graduate student who has demonstrated academic excellence with a strong compassion for individuals with special needs and an interest in serving the deaf or disabled, and The Joan Develin Coley Award for Excellence in Education, awarded to a graduate student with the best record in the study of literacy theory and practice.
- Faculty awards: The Ira G. Zepp Distinguished Teaching Award, recognizing inspired classroom work and dedication to students, and the Shelton Adjunct Faculty Award, given to an adjunct faculty member at the graduate or undergraduate level whose teaching demonstrates a commitment to excellence and genuine care for students.
Additional Commencement-related events
In conjunction with Commencement, several events are scheduled for Thursday, May 22:
Army ROTC Commissioning Ceremony
James Martin '93
McDaniel’s Green Terror Battalion Army ROTC program hosts its Commissioning Ceremony at 10 a.m. May 22 in Baker Memorial Chapel with seven graduating students from McDaniel being commissioned as second lieutenants in the U.S. Army.
Retired Col. James Martin '93, current president of the Alumni Council, is the guest speaker. Martin, who commissioned as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army, served as an air defense artillery and information systems officer and was the Garrison Commander at Army Support Area, Fort Dix, New Jersey, before retiring as colonel. He is currently a vice president of executive programs for Gartner, Inc., a research and advisory company.
Senior Investiture and Honors Convocation
2024 recipients of the Bates Prize and the Mary Ward Lewis Prize
The annual Senior Investiture and Honors Convocation takes place at 6:30 p.m. May 22 in Baker Memorial Chapel. Graduating seniors receive academic, activity and leadership awards during the ceremony, including the Bates Prize and the Mary Ward Lewis Prize for the graduating seniors with the best undergraduate records.
At 6 p.m., graduating seniors will process through Ward Memorial Arch prior to the Senior Investiture and Honors Convocation.
