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Show 08 | MyWeberMedia.com| September 02, 2020 SPRING 2020 GRADUATION CEREMONY NIKKI DORBER | The Signpost THE CLASS THAT PERSEVERED: President Mortensen offering words of praise at WSU’s 2020 Graduation, which consisted of both in-person and virtual speakers. By ADAM RUBIN Senior Reporter WSU’s 115th commencement ceremony saw more than 5,700 spring and summer graduates finally celebrate their graduation on Aug. 29. The sun has now set on WSU’s graduating class of 2020 — “The Class That Persevered.” Attendees came to support their family members, classmates and loved ones who were not able to attend commencement as anticipated due to the COVID-19 shutdown. Graduates were seated on the stadium’s field, socially-distanced. Both sides of the stadium’s bleachers were as full as could be with attendees socially distanced. Crystal Maggelet, CEO of FJ Management Inc., and a member of the Utah State Board of Higher Education, received an invitation in Jan. 2020 to speak at spring commencement and had planned to speak at the April ceremony. The Honorary Degree Committee granted Maggelet a degree at WSU. President Brad Mortensen asked her to give the commencement speech for this “memorable” ceremony. “Everything is different, and so no one can say, ‘We’ve always done it that way,’” Maggelet said. “I would say that graduating is that way too.” During her speech, Maggelet asked the graduates how they would embrace the new normal, what they can do for others and what they would make of their lives one day at a time. The graduates arrived at a new jumping-offpoint in their lives; some are considering what to do with their degrees after finishing school while others continue their pursuit of higher educational goals. One attendee, Rod Gerherdy, came out to support his daughter, who earned her high school diploma and had graduated with university certificates. He was happy to have the opportunity to come out and celebrate his daughter’s achievements. “I think we can get back to normal, responsi- |