Watch the May, 2022 Commencement Ceremony
Baccalaureate ceremony
Sat., May 14, 2022, 4 p.m. in MPK Chapel
A national collegiate photography house will take photographs on Commencement day of all graduates during the diploma presentation on the stage and as the graduate steps off the stage holding his or her diploma. Shortly after graduation, the photography studio will send you several color proofs for your review and instructions for ordering prints. These will come directly from the studio, not from Albright. After Commencement, the college will post a gallery of professional photographs to the Commencement website.
Albright College contracts with a videographer during Commencement weekend. The College will post clips, speaker footage, and the Commencement ceremony on the Commencement website shortly after the event.
Practice Line Up Information for Graduates
Schedule (Graduation Weekend):
Saturday, May 14, 2022:
Coronavirus Information for Graduates and Guests
Albright will return to pre-pandemic capacity limits for Baccalaureate and Commencement. Masking is currently optional; non-vaccinated individuals are encouraged to wear masks indoors.
All guests who will be attending Albright ceremonies are expected to take health and safety precautions when traveling and during commencement weekend. Please do not attend an in-person ceremony if within the last 14 days you think you have been exposed, are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19, are awaiting test results or, if in the past 10 days, you have tested positive for COVID-19.
Information for Graduates – Updated 3/22/2022
Approved Academic Cords, Stoles, Pins at Commencement Ceremonies
Stoles and cords
Only stoles representing Jacob Albright Scholars are approved for Commencement ceremonies. Cords are meant to signify college engagement. Therefore, only cords representing organizations that are approved by Albright’s Student Government Association are allowed. Cords for non-SGA approved organizations are prohibited. No exceptions will be made to these rules, unless approved by the Provost, in writing.
Arrival
8:30 a.m. — Graduates report, with cap, gown and hood. Please enter the Santander Arena at the Press Entrance on Penn Street, where you will be checked in and guided to your designated seat. Your tassel should be to the front RIGHT of your graduation cap.
9:45 a.m. — Processional begins. Remain standing for the National Anthem and invocation. Men should remove caps for the National Anthem, invocation prayer, benediction and Alma Mater.
Conferring Degrees, Presentation of Diplomas
Graduates rise as complete rows at signal from one of the faculty marshals.
As soon as President Fetrow has conferred your degree upon you as a group, all will be seated. Each row in your group will rise and proceed in alphabetical order to the right side of the platform (as you face it). Keep at least six feet behind the person in front of you.
When you reach the platform, pause for a moment while your name is being announced to the audience before proceeding to the President, who will hand you your diploma cover.
You will then continue across the platform and return to your seat following the Marshals’ directions. You may be seated immediately.
Once all degrees have been conferred, instructions will be delivered by the class officers to switch the tassel on the cap to the LEFT.
The Recessional
Follow the instructions of the Marshals for the recessional.
Graduates and families are asked to meet outside of Santander Arena after the ceremony.
We expect that the ceremony will last approximately two hours.
Saucony Creek & Franklin Station Brewpub
690 Franklin Street
Reading, PA 19602
(484) 755-5680
Stokesay Castle
141 Stokesay Castle Lane
Reading, PA 19606
(610) 375-6100
Stopper’s Steak and Seafood
6421 Perkiomen Avenue
Birdsboro, PA 19508
(610) 582-8911
Tlacuani Mexican Restaurant Bar & Grill
5005 Kutztown Road
Temple, PA 19560
(610) 921-3037
West Reading Tavern
606 Penn Ave
West Reading, PA 19611
(610) 376-9232
Commencement Announcements, Flowers, and Gifts
Santander Arena and Accessibility Seating
To request accommodations for Commencement.
To request accommodations for Baccalaureate.
Santander Arena Accessibility Seating
For the Arena the main entrance is ADA accessible, located at 700 Penn Street, there is a ramp for easy access and an elevator in the lobby for access to the 100 level as well as the 300 suite level. If you have a 100 level accessible ticket you can also use the entrance located at the 8th and Cherry Street end of the building. For ADA seating located in the floor seating, patrons must use the elevator located behind section 114. From there, event staff will assist you to your seating. Both public elevators can be used to reach ADA seating located on the 300 suite level.
For the Performing Arts Center the main entrance located at 136 N. 6th Street has a ramp for accessibility and an elevator in the main lobby to gain access to the balcony level. The balcony level seating is not wheelchair accessible. Please contact the Box Office if you purchased balcony seating and require the use of a wheelchair.
Santander Parking Information – Updated 4/26/22
PARKING
Reading Parking Authority’s rate schedule for area graduation ceremonies at the Santander Arena is as follows:
Doubletree Garage – $10
South Penn Garage – $5
Reed and Court – $15
Additional information can be found on the website at www.readingparking.com/event-parking .
Order your cap, gown, hood, and tassel here and have it shipped to your home or shipped to the bookstore to be picked up the week of finals.
If you have any questions, please contact the Albright College bookstore at sm473@bncollege.com.
Erin Hayes-Cook, M.Div. ’02, grew up in the rolling hills of New Jersey. While there she spent her days with family and friends exploring the woods, reading and using the wonderful imagination one develops when one is an only child. Her weekends were spent at a small Baptist Church a few miles from home.In the search for the perfect college she found Albright College, where she served in the Albright Christian Fellowship, African-American society and the Gospel Choir amongst many other activities. She graduated in 2002 with a bachelor’s degree in communications and religious studies.During her college years, Hayes-Cook sensed a call to ministry which was affirmed by her home church. Right after college she said yes to the adventure of Princeton Theological Seminary. She completed Presbyterian Church (USA) ordination requirements and was ordained by the Presbytery of Donegal in 2013.Since 2005, Hayes-Cook has served churches in New Jersey and Pennsylvania as a director of Christian education, director of youth ministries and solo pastor. Each context of ministry has been unique and has given her joy to discover the challenge and hope of each community.Because of her bi-racial identity, Hayes-Cook leads from the middle which makes her aware of the middle places in all our lives. She enjoys serving communities that are diverse in more ways than one. Her most recent work has been to develop River of Resilience — a program that helps African-Americans find spiritual tools of resilience in the face of racism.Pastor Erin married her husband, Lawrence, in 2016, and welcomed their daughter, Arden, into the world in June 2019. You will find her always looking for a good cup of coffee and a welcoming table.Roger L. Gregory
Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
Judge Gregory will be awarded an honorary doctorate and offer remarks at Albright College’s 162nd Commencement ceremony, at Santander Arena, Sunday, May 15, 2022.
Judge Gregory is the first African-American to sit on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit and the only person in the nation’s history to be appointed to a federal appellate court by two presidents of different political parties (Bill Clinton, George W. Bush).
Formerly a partner in the law firm of Wilder & Gregory, Judge Gregory grew up in Petersburg, Virginia and graduated from Virginia State College and the University of Michigan Law School. President William J. Clinton recess appointed him to the Court on Dec. 27, 2000, and President George W. Bush commissioned his lifetime appointment to the Court in July 2001. He became Chief Judge on July 9, 2016. He is a member of the Judicial Conference of the United States that governs the Federal Judiciary. The Fourth Circuit includes the states of Maryland, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina.
By appointment of the Chief Justice of the United States, Judge Gregory served on the Brown v. Board of Education 50th Anniversary Commission established by the President and Congress to commemorate that landmark decision.
“I was humbled to learn that I will receive an honorary degree from Albright College — a top-rated institution of higher learning where academic excellence, accessibility and affordability are truly priorities,” said Judge Gregory. “I look forward to informing the graduates of my personal journey and, hopefully, inspiring their journey that lies ahead.”
Albright College president Jacquelyn S. Fetrow, Ph.D. ’82 remembers listening to Judge Gregory ask terrific questions while he was a trustee of the University of Richmond. “He was always focused on how every institutional decision would impact students and how those decisions would be handled equitably,” she said. “These are questions that matter at Albright College, too, and I am certain that all of us will be inspired by his message, his life, and his career journey.”
Judge Gregory’s past leadership positions include Chairman of the Industrial Development Authority of Richmond, President of the Friends Association for Children, President of the Black History Museum and Cultural Center of Virginia, Rector of Virginia Commonwealth University, the Board of Visitors of Virginia State University and also, as an adjunct professor of Constitutional Law and President of the Old Dominion Bar Association.
His numerous awards include the National Conference of Christians and Jews Humanitarian Award, the National Bar Association’s Gertrude E. Rush and Equal Justice Awards and the Washington Bar Association’s Charles Hamilton Houston Merit Medallion.
A Trustee Emeritus for the University of Richmond, Judge Gregory is an inductee in the Virginia Interscholastic Heritage Association’s Hall of Fame, a Fellow of the Virginia State Bar Foundation, and a member of the American Law Institute. He holds honorary degrees from Virginia Union University, Virginia State University, Virginia Commonwealth University, Widener University, Saint Paul’s College and The American University.
Kenneth Rolon ’22
Bachelor of Science: accounting
Albright College School of Professional Studies
As a full-time student graduating this spring, Rolon has balanced his schooling and personal life while working full-time for the Sherwin-Williams Paint Company. He was born and raised in Hillsborough, New Jersey where he attended Hillsborough High School. He is the eldest son of Dr. Mary Jane Madonna and Noel Rolon and has one amazing brother, named Andrew.
Rolon is passionate about understanding the issues of cultural bias and the stigma around discussing mental health. He hopes to highlight the idea that everyone is experiencing a unique, internal battle of their own. He can usually be found on his skateboard or shooting pool, and lives with his loving girlfriend, Lizze, and their cat, Bagheera.
Post-graduation, he hopes to find a career that enables him to understand and practice the craft of accountancy more deeply.
