Celebrating SEBS Class of 2021

Convocation may look a bit different this year, but the proud moments remain

Convocation

According to Merriam-Webster, the word “convocation” is “an assembly of persons called together to a meeting.” On May 14, the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (SEBS) did meet, though in the age of COVID-19, the meeting was virtual. Students, faculty, staff, parents, and extended family and friends assembled, at home, for a reading of names.

That assembly, however, was so much more than a reading of names. It was a rite of passage for hundreds of men and women who worked hard, studied hard, researched, found their mentors, won awards, made friends, discovered their paths, and succeeded. And the beloved community that surrounded them during their time at school looked on with pride and hope.

These newly minted alumni not only graduated from the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, but they did so during an unprecedented pandemic that has left so many adrift. They handled this adversity with grace, grit, and creativity. And in doing so, they’re uniquely prepared to face global challenges like emerging diseases, food insecurity, and the climate crisis with skills that will lead the world back to a place of hope.

The Past

It’s believed that the baccalaureate service originated at Oxford University in 1432 when each bachelor was required to deliver a sermon in Latin as part of the program. The practice continued with the earliest universities in this country—founded mainly to educate ministers, as was the case with Queens College, now Rutgers University.

The first and only graduate of Queen’s College was Matthew Leydt in 1774. And even after the establishment of the Rutgers Scientific School—now SEBS—in 1864, only 99 men graduated in the first 15 years after its founding.

The Present

Now, SEBS confers undergraduate degrees on more than 600 co-ed students each year. Typically held on the lawns of Cook campus’s beloved Passion Puddle, the COVID-19 pandemic caused convocation to look very different for the graduates in the Class of 2020 and 2021. (Watch the SEBS Class of 2021 virtual convocation, which was celebrated on May 14.)

By the Numbers

Despite this, the pomp and circumstance, celebration of student accomplishment, and pride of faculty, staff, students, family, and friends have remained at the heart of this important step to the future.

As former First Lady of the United States Michelle Obama said, “It is absolutely still possible to make a difference.” And we know the SEBS Class of 2021 will do exactly that.

The Future

For the first time since 2019, Rutgers University will honor its graduates during in-person, school-based ceremonies in fall 2021 to celebrate and honor the Class of 2020 and 2021. Save the date for Rutgers University–New Brunswick and RBHS: October 22-23.

Details of each celebration will be announced by the relevant chancellor’s offices in the coming months and posted on the university website. We can’t wait to bring our graduates together in person and salute them for their accomplishments.

In honor of their hard work and achievement and to celebrate their future successes, let’s congratulate the SEBS Class of 2021!