HOLYOKE — A diverse class of 781 Holyoke Community College graduates celebrated the college’s 79th Commencement on Saturday at the MassMutual Center in Springfield, where associate degrees and certificates were conferred upon members of the Class of 2026.
Graduates processed to pomp and circumstance as family and friends cheered in the arena. Half of this year’s graduates were over 25 years old, and it was clear that support from loved ones carried many of them throughout their studies. At least one graduate in cap and gown bottle-fed a baby during the ceremony before handing the baby to family members in the audience.
“Behind every graduate stands a network of support,” said HCC President Dr. George Timmons.
“A college degree is far more than a credential,” Timmons said. “It represents sacrifice. It represents resilience. It represents countless moments when you chose to continue moving forward, even when the path ahead was uncertain and difficult.”
Graduates ranged in age from 17 to 69, including two dual-enrolled students who earned their associate degrees before their high school diploma. This year’s class was 56% white and 44% students of color, hailing from 71 different cities and towns across the state, as well as several international graduates from countries including Brazil, Colombia, Congo, Jamaica, and Laos, to name a few.
“Diversity is HCC’s signature,” said Katherine Douglas, interim vice president of student and academic affairs.
As the recipient of the college’s 2026 Elaine Marieb Faculty Chair for Teaching Excellence Award, HCC English Professor Patricia Sullivan of Holyoke delivered the keynote address. Sullivan, an HCC alum who has lived in Holyoke all her life, said that attending HCC was one of the best decisions she’s ever made, calling the college her “second home.”
“I could have retired many years ago but have chosen to stay because I love my work here, the institution, and its people,” Sullivan said. “My students have given me so much. You are the real heroes today.”
Sullivan lauded the graduates for their courage, determination, grit and curiosity. She encouraged them to be true to themselves and continue to shine brightly.
“Whether it took you two years or seven years to be on this stage, the amount of time does not matter,” Sullivan continued. “What is important is this: You did it and you did it well. Your story is still being written, but this chapter proves how strong you truly are.”
A handful of students from this year’s class also were featured on the commencement stage, including Foundation of Health major Yasmari Cardenales of Springfield, who delivered the student address.
Cardenales, a working mother and adult learner who will attend Elms College in the fall on a presidential scholarship to pursue a Bachelor of Science in Nursing, said the most important lesson she learned at HCC was a sense of belonging — something she lacked in high school but found 26 years later as an older student. Her professors and classmates welcomed her and made her feel she fit in, she said before the ceremony.
After high school, she worked for the American Red Cross for 20 years. But “after COVID, something shifted — the world felt uncertain, and so did I,” she said in her commencement speech.
“I realized there were pieces missing from my puzzle,” Cardenales said. “Pieces I had been searching for without even knowing their shape. I wanted options, and I wanted growth. And, as a first-generation college student, I knew that if education was my next step, I would give it everything I had.
“And guys, listen: When a Puerto Rican lesbian woman says she’ll do something, she does it,” Cardenales joked.
In HCC, Cardenales found a community where she felt safe enough to grow, she added.
Music major Gaia Ciano of Springfield, the commencement student performer who plans to pursue a bachelor’s degree in music education at UMass, sang a rendition of “My Way” by Jacques Revaux, with lyrics by Paul Anka. Ciano changed the lyrics of the main refrain — “I did it my way” — to “we did it our way,” in honor of the graduating class.
Liberal arts major Estefany Duron Mejia of Chicopee presented the class gift. The class this year chose to support two spaces on campus, including $250 for the campus sensory space, as well as a $250 donation to support the Muslim student prayer space on campus.
“Together these gifts… reflect the values we hope to carry forward as a class: compassion, inclusion, dignity and care for one another,” Mejia said.
In her address, alumni council president Trudy Monson congratulated the class on joining the more than 40,000 HCC alumni across the world, including many in the audience who stood to be recognized.
“Remember, education is not a destination: it’s a journey,” Monson said.