Congratulations, Class of 2025! Lawrence celebrates graduates in inspiring Commencement

Lawrence University's Class of 2025 was celebrated in grand fashion at a Commencement held June 15 on Main Hall Green.

More than 350 graduates walked the Commencement stage to loud applause from family, friends, and the Lawrence community at a ceremony that included an inspiring message from Commencement speaker Campbell Scott ’83, an accomplished actor and director who first found his way to the stage while an undergraduate at Lawrence.

Confetti and graduation caps flew as Commencement came to a close on an overcast but gorgeous Sunday morning. Faculty then led the graduates through the Lawrence Arch in a recessional that has quickly become a cherished tradition, representing the transition from student to alumnus. The graduates join an alumni community more than 22,000 strong.

“Sitting where you sit at this exact moment, getting a degree from this venerable institution, is not just an accomplishment, it’s not just the fruition of time and effort spent, but it’s also an irreplaceable marker of your investment in yourself,” Scott told the graduates.

Look for more photos in a Commencement photo gallery

Scott, who first rose to prominence as an actor in the 1990 film Longtime Companion, released seven years after he graduated, talked about his journey through Lawrence, from arriving a bit unfocused to being inspired and refocused by brilliant and committed professors. He would go on to a 40-year-plus career as an actor and director that included such films as Dying Young, Singles, Big Night, The Amazing Spider-Man, and the recently released Nonnas.

“Lawrence is where I learned how to learn, and what part of my education might be solely my responsibility,” Scott said. “That real knowledge wasn’t just memorizing or regurgitating what was factual or established, or measured positively by success and negatively by failure, but had more to do with recognizing strengths and weaknesses that were particular to me and having a safe place to investigate them.”

Three teaching awards presented to Lawrence faculty

He encouraged the graduates to take the lessons learned at Lawrence—in and out of the classroom—and apply them to their next steps and the steps after that. A liberal arts education is built for just that.

“Building an adult identity is a messy business,” Scott said. “I know this because I’m still doing it, 40-some years after I started trying to figure it out here in Appleton. Every success, every joy, every creation, every stable period will be, must be, balanced with some degree of its shadow side. There will be failure, grief, destruction, and instability. Although our intelligence may try to tell us that the ideal life is lived skating away from, or above, those shadow experiences, our souls know quite well it’s only by meeting and passing through them that we learn how to be truly safe in the world.”

President Laurie A. Carter applauded the graduates for their intellect, their creativity, their commitment to each other, and their resilience, all necessary to get them to the Commencement stage. She noted that the graduates were entering their first year at Lawrence when she arrived as president in 2021. They have grown together.

“The liberal arts education you have received at Lawrence has shown you a path to a lifetime of learning and growing,” she told the graduates. “You’ll often hear alumni say that it was at Lawrence that they learned how to learn. And that carries through life, through good times and challenging times. You are now better equipped to adapt, to innovate, to think critically, and to thrive.”

Bruna Velez ’25, an international relations major from New York City, served as senior class speaker. She thanked and congratulated her classmates and gave a shout-out to the family and friends who supported the journey.

“I am an Ecuadorian American woman, an identity I wear with a badge of honor,” she said. “My family immigrated to the U.S. for this—to watch their daughter reach further and bigger than their biggest dreams. I stand here as a commemoration of their hard work, drive, compassion, and joy. I know many of you share this sentiment in one way or another. So, thank you to all the families and support systems that are in attendance for my fellow graduates, for all that you have done and will do.”

The Lawrence faculty, led by faculty marshal Timothy X. Troy and attired in traditional regalia, processed across College Avenue and onto Main Hall Green at the outset of Commencement. They were joined by Carter, Board of Trustees Chair Scott Myers ’79, Scott, and a second honored guest, Robert McDonald ’73, an accomplished pianist and music educator who gave the Baccalaureate address on Saturday afternoon in Memorial Chapel. The faculty then lined the sidewalk leading to the stage in front of Main Hall, greeting the graduates as they processed to their seats—family and friends taking photos and video amid the cheers. The Lawrence University Graduation Band, led by Matthew Arau and Ceon Rumphs from the Conservatory faculty, provided accompaniment. Main Hall, the oldest and most iconic building on campus, served as the backdrop, with giant video screens flanking both sides of the stage.

Both Scott and McDonald were presented honorary degrees during Commencement—Scott receiving an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts and McDonald receiving an honorary Doctor of Musical Arts. Adding additional significance was that Scott’s mother, Colleen Dewhurst, who attended Milwaukee-Downer for two years before embarking on her own brilliant acting career, was awarded an honorary doctorate from Lawrence in 1972.  

In his address to graduates at Saturday’s Baccalaureate service, McDonald, the acclaimed concert pianist, talked of the need to keep learning, calling one's education a lifelong commitment.

“Knowing oneself is key, and it can take a long time to get good at it, to be honest about what we do know and believe, and particularly what we don’t know,” he said.

At the close of Sunday’s Commencement, just as a light rain began to fall, the graduates were greeted with applause, high-fives, and hugs as they made their way along College Avenue to a reception on the patio in front of Mudd Library.

“In every classroom, in every late-night study session, we’ve supported one another and grown together,” Velez said. “It’s not just the knowledge we gained that will make us college graduates, it is the ability to problem-solve, seek help, and fail upwards together. What makes Lawrence so special is this, this community.”

Scott told the graduates he came to Lawrence as a history major before finding inspiration in the English curriculum and theater. He was given space to grow, to fail, and to try again. He said he hopes members of the Class of 2025 will say the same.

“This was a place where I could start investing in my own humanity,” Scott said. “And that was mostly a stumbling affair, believe me, hazy with drink, a little narcissistic, often selfish, sometimes all out wretched, always imperfect. But, also, room for some leaps and bounds in there, many of them a surprise, and all of it safe enough to continue on.”