CBU to Celebrate the Success of more than 800 Spring Graduates

Cape Breton University will host two in-person Spring Convocation ceremonies this year to celebrate the success of more than 800 graduates. This will be the first in-person Spring convocation since the CVOID-19 pandemic began.

On Thursday, May 19, at 1:00pm the School of Arts and Social Sciences, School of Education and Health and School of Science and Technology will graduate more than 300 students. On Friday, May 20, at 11:00am, the Shannon School of Business will graduate more than 500 students. Both ceremonies will take place on campus at the Canada Games Complex.

“Despite the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic over the past several years, the graduating class of 2022 has persevered. We are honoured to celebrate this monumental occasion in the lives of our students,” says David C. Dingwall, President and Vice-Chancellor. “The fact that our students have persevered is a display of tenacity, dedication and outstanding ability to overcome challenges. These are skills and abilities that will carry them forward, and we are so very proud of each and every one of them.”

The graduating class, made up of students from more than 40 countries, will receive their degrees, diplomas and certificates from Chancellor Annette Verschuren. As always, students were given the option of requesting their parchments in a variety of languages, including French, Gaelic and Mi’kmaw.

Class Valedictorian, Brooke Ramsay, will graduate with a Bachelor of Arts degree and says, “The most wonderful part about CBU is that each and every one of us arrived here as unique individuals, and although we shared in a common student experience and grew together, we will also leave here as unique individuals. Our University does not mould students to fit into a particular box—it empowers them to attain the vision they have for themselves. Every single CBU graduate has something special to offer the world, and I absolutely cannot wait to see what more we’re going to accomplish.”

Cape Breton University will also confer honorary doctorates on four individuals from Cape Breton who have made a significant impact in arts and culture, medicine, and Indigenous Rights. CBU will confer the degrees Doctor of Letters, honoris causa, on Bette MacDonald, Maynard Morrison and Senator Dan Christmas, and Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, on Dr. Rex Dunn.

This year’s ceremony will feature African drumming by Drummers from Home, Indigenous drumming by current CBU Artist in Residence, Sons of Membertou and include local songstress Ashley Buckingham, who will open the ceremony with O Canada and close the ceremony with CBU’s official song, We Rise Again.

The ceremonies will be live-streamed at www.cbu.ca/convocation