There was brief pause in Tuesday afternoon’s virtual convocation ceremony but it wasn’t because of any technical difficulties.

A timeout was taken to recognize Niagara College’s 100,000th graduate, Emily Gushue, who received her diploma in the Community and Justice Services program.

“Reaching (this) milestone is meaningful for all of us at NC,” said College president Sean Kennedy. “It underscores our growth and success as a college over the past 53 years while highlighting the ever-expansive reach of our global alumni community, which, including our Spring 2021 graduates, will now stand over 100,000 strong.”

The significance of the moment wasn’t lost on Gushue, who was made aware of her status before the ceremony. She appeared briefly on camera celebrating in front of a lawn sign announcing the milestone at her home in Ridgeway.

“I have goosebumps right now,” she said when learned she was lucky No. 100,000. “I definitely was not expecting this at all.”

In addition to Gushue, the spotlight was on nearly 800 students from the Canadian Food and Wine Institute, School of Allied Health and School of Justice and Fitness, who joined in the celebrations on June 22 and received their degrees.

They are among the nearly 4,000 students graduating from NC this spring.

As Fiona Allan, vice-president Academic noted, the Class of 2021 completed their studies in a way unlike any class before it.

“Our Class of 2021 graduands are the first in our College’s history who have completed over a year of their studies under the extraordinary circumstances presented by the pandemic,” Allan said. “Almost everyone needed to adapt to completing their studies at least partially online. Some of our graduands even completed their entire program remotely without stepping foot on our campuses or meeting with their faculty or classmates in person. You all put the NC in the words ‘perseverance’ and resilience.’”

Student success in the spotlight

The afternoon ceremony saw James Casselman, Governor General’s Award recipient, graduate from Police Foundations. Casselman earned the prestigious recognition for achieving the highest grade point average — 98% — of any NC graduate. The Niagara resident also received the Dean’s Award for the highest grade point average in his academic school.

“The Governor General’s Award means something to me beyond words but it really pales in comparison to what we’ve all accomplished through the adversity of the pandemic,” Casselman said to students during the ceremony. “As the old saying goes ‘Character is what you accomplish when nobody is looking,’ and we all accomplished so much without anybody looking.” 

Sidney Stefanac, who graduated from the Pharmacy Technician program, and Geoffrey Mclellan of the Brewmaster and Brewery Operations Management program, were also announced as recipients of dean’s awards from the School of Allied Health and the Canadian Food and Wine Institute, respectively.

“I am so honoured to be receiving the Dean’s Award,” Stefanac said. “I have always tried hard to succeed as my grades are important to me, but I never would have thought I would have achieved this accomplishment.”

Niagara College’s June Virtual Convocation ceremonies, which kicked off on June 21, will continue twice a day – at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. – up to and including June 25. The ceremonies include an address and performance by guest speaker Sarah Blackwood, the Canadian singer, songwriter and musician from the Juno-award-winning band, Walk Off the Earth.

Visit the College’s Virtual Convocation site to view the schedule or to access the livestream ceremonies niagaracollege.ca/virtualconvocation/.

Niagara College offers more than 130 diploma, bachelor degree and advanced level programs; as well as more than 600 credit, vocational and general interest Part-Time Studies courses. Areas of specialization include food and wine science, advanced technology, media, applied health and community safety, supported by unique learning enterprises in food, wine, beer, distilling, horticulture and esthetics. Visit niagaracollege.ca