CONTACT: Steve Prestegard
(920) 923-7656
Fax (920) 923-8623
sprestegard@mariancollege.edu
Fond du Lac, Wis. — Graduation is a day where the thoughts of graduates return to their path to their college degree, and ahead to where they’re going.
Marian College’s 2007 fall Commencement Dec. 15 featured the graduation of 142 undergraduates, half of whom graduated with honors, and 99 master’s-degree recipients. Three students graduated as Honors Scholars, and 17 students graduated with double majors.
The list of graduates includes a mix of traditional-age undergraduate students, those who attended college as adults, and those who earned master’s degrees.
“I am excited; this is a big accomplishment,” said Brenda McGrath of Fond du Lac, who earned an Administration of Justice degree through Marian’s Working Families Grant Program. “I am glad the Working Families Grant has made this possible for us.”
Andre L. Williams of Milwaukee, who earned a Bachelor of Administration of Justice degree, termed himself “relieved.” A Milwaukee police officer for 16 years, Williams sees his degree as “an opportunity for advancement. I hope to become chief of the Police Department.”
“I am sad; I will leave many friends here at Marian,” said Todor Rangelov Gavazov of Plovdiv, Bulgaria, a Marketing graduate. “I will miss my teachers; they are real mentors to me.”
“This is a big accomplishment for me,” said David Easterhoff of Plymouth, recipient of a Biology bachelor’s degree. “I want to do my doctorate in a health-related field. I am not sure; I am debating whether I want a M.D or a Ph.D.”
“This day has not hit me yet — maybe in a few days,” said Donald W. “Buddy” Larson of Fond du Lac, an Information Technology graduate who after graduating has “no particular interest in terms of industry. I will take whatever God throws at me.”
The graduates include one husband-and-wife team, Nick and Jill Scharenbroch of Kiel, who earned Master of Arts in Education degrees, and a brother and sister team, Ryan DeYoung of Brookfield, who graduated in Applied Information Technology, and Beth DeYoung of Fond du Lac, who graduated in Management.
“I am glad I have the opportunity to move on to the next thing,” said Jill Scharenbroch, a teacher in Sheboygan.
More education is also on the mind of Mohammed Bey, who received a Master of Science in Organizational Leadership and Quality, his second Marian degree.
“I am doing this again,” he said. “I love learning and I want to get a Ph.D.”
Marian College is a premier Catholic applied liberal arts college located in Fond du Lac, Wis. The College offers more than 40 undergraduate and graduate programs at its main campus, and a variety of adult accelerated-degree programs in facilities throughout Wisconsin. The size of the College permits a very favorable student–faculty ratio, one of the lowest among Wisconsin colleges. Campus planning efforts are under way to enhance facilities on the College’s 104-acre Fond du Lac campus, as well as at Marian’s 15-acre Town of Byron campus and facilities in Appleton and West Allis. Marian’s programs of study are designed to meet a full range of pre-professional and professional academic needs, including business, education, the arts, sciences, nursing and technology. Marian College is a community committed to learning, dedicated to service and social justice, and joined together by spiritual traditions.
