Tri-C to Honor Graduates at Fall Commencement on Dec. 15

College sees 8 percent increase in students petitioning for degrees and certificates

Cuyahoga Community College (Tri-C^®) will celebrate the academic achievements of more than 1,600 petitioning graduates during Fall Commencement at 6 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 15.

The College has been asked to confer 1,634 associate degrees and certificates of completion at the graduation ceremony. That’s an increase of more than 8 percent from last year’s Fall Commencement.

“Our mission at Cuyahoga Community College revolves around student success and completion,” said Alex Johnson, president of Tri-C. “It is with great pride that we celebrate these graduates and recognize this milestone in their academic journey.”

The College also will award Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degrees to Margot James Copeland of KeyBank and Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson to recognize their commitment to Tri-C, its students and the Northeast Ohio community.

Copeland has served as an advocate for education through her work with KeyBank, where she is executive vice president and director of philanthropy and civic engagement. She also serves as chair and CEO of KeyBank Foundation.

Under Copeland’s leadership, KeyBank and the KeyBank Foundation have been long-term partners with Tri-C and made a lasting impact on the region through workforce initiatives and scholarship programs providing opportunities for thousands of community members.

Jackson, now in his third term as Cleveland’s mayor, has led the city’s ongoing renaissance while making his hometown a national model for excellence in municipal government and education.

The mayor is a graduate of Tri-C and frequently collaborates with the College on programs to ensure that Cleveland residents benefit from the opportunities offered on campus.

The student Commencement speaker will be Matthew Moretto, who maintained a 4.0 GPA while earning an Associate of Science. This will be his second degree from Tri-C. The 30-year-old Medina resident earned an Associate of Arts in May.

Moretto worked for nine years after his high school graduation before enrolling at Tri-C. He intends to transfer to The Ohio State University in January to pursue a bachelor’s degree in political science. After that, he hopes to attend law school.

This year’s commencement ceremony will be held at Cleveland State University’s Wolstein Center, located at 2000 Prospect Ave. in Cleveland.

December 13, 2016

John Horton, 216-906-1085 john.horton@tri-c.edu