“Where Everyone Knows You by Name”: DeSales Celebrates the Class of 2025

Diya Stephen ’25 can still vividly remember her very first day of Orientation, nearly four years ago.

Stephen, president of the Class of 2025 and a medical studies graduate, recounted being a scared first-year student, driving up to Tocik Hall with her parents, where the Character U staff was eagerly waiting.

“Father Jim [Greenfield] knocked on our car window, introducing himself and telling my parents not to worry, that DeSales would take good care of me,” she said. “And DeSales has done just that for all of us standing here today.”

Stephen warmly welcomed her fellow graduates in the Class of 2025 at the University’s 56th Commencement ceremony at the PPL Center in Allentown, calling the event a “celebration of all we have accomplished.”   

She thanked all of the faculty, staff, family, and friends in attendance for their constant guidance and support. And she encouraged her fellow graduates to uphold the core values they learned during their time on campus.

“Let us continue to be lifelong learners, growing in wisdom and knowledge. Continue to serve the community and be as welcoming to others as DeSales has been to us. I am forever grateful that I chose a small college in Pennsylvania that exudes community and inclusiveness, where everyone knows you by name.”  

Father James Greenfield, OSFS ’84, Ed.D., president, then addressed the class, congratulating the graduates and reflecting on the words of poet Walker Percy: “Lucky are those who do not secretly believe that every possibility is open to them.”

Fr. Greenfield urged the class to resist the temptation of constantly wondering if there’s something better, or getting caught in a state of “What if?” Instead, he encouraged them to embrace a better question—“What now?”

“Mark Twain was alleged to have said: ‘The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why,’” Fr. Greenfield said. “This statement invites us to consider the ‘What now?’ question and this Commencement, this beginning, propels you to rediscover your purpose.”

Fr. Greenfield then conferred degrees upon 439 graduating students, including undergraduates and graduates. An additional 140 students, who have either already received their diplomas or who will be receiving them in the next several months, also were recognized.

Once all of the diplomas were handed out, Terese Wignot, Ph.D., provost, announced the recipients of this year’s awards:  

• Connor McGill ’25, a computer science graduate, received the Provincial Medal of Honor, presented by the Very Reverend Joseph A. Newman, OSFS ’07, M.Div., to the graduate who best exemplifies the spirit of St. Francis de Sales.
• Diya Stephen ’25 received the President’s Medal, presented by Fr. Greenfield to the graduate who has attained intellectual maturity consistent with his or her talents. 
• Annmarie Houck, assistant professor and chair of the department of mathematics and computer science, received the Provost’s Award for Faculty Excellence in Teaching.

For more on the Class of 2025, including a wall of social media posts and the livestream of Commencement, visit desales.edu/commencement.