Class of 2026 honored at Centre College’s 203rd Commencement

Centre College celebrated the 339 graduates of the Class of 2026 during the College’s Commencement exercises held Sunday, May 24. 

The graduates walked across the stage with diplomas in hand before throwing their caps in the air — ending their chapter as Centre students and beginning the next phase of their journey.

“As we celebrate this commencement today, we take pride in your many accomplishments,” said Centre President Milton C. Moreland. “You are a part of Centre’s ongoing story, a continuous 207 years of producing leaders and change agents for our world. You now have the education and experiences to make a difference for good, and we look forward to watching you in all your future endeavors.” 

At the ceremony, the Presidential Award for Extraordinary Service was presented to Crit Blackburn Luallen ’74, who is retiring from the Centre College Board of Trustees after a remarkable 28-year term.

“My experiences at Centre have become my life and my career,” Luallen said in her speech to the class. “Serving on this Board has been an honor to me.”

Click here to read more about Crit Luallen's service to Centre College

Former Centre professor and president of Wofford College Nayef Samhat delivered the

 Commencement Address. He encouraged students to reflect on how they can create change and use the lessons they’ve learned at Centre to make a positive impact on the world.

“Difference making comes in all ways and forms, as many of you have practiced during your time here at Centre in the community or on campus, at home or abroad,” Samhat said. “Difference making occurs in the small and modest acts of kindness or sometimes in grand gestures, carried on by people in near infinite ways every day around the world. We all have the opportunity to extend ourselves in helpful and innovative ways in whatever we do, the sum of which can touch us all.”

Seven extraordinary students were named valedictorian from the Class of 2026. They are Srija Badireddi, Jonah Crenshaw, Keely Faulkner, Lydia Handy, Bennett Marrillia, Rosemary Mihindukulasuriya and Caroline Olds.

A total of 153 students graduated with honors: 37 graduated Summa Cum Laude, 58 Magna Cum Laude and 58 Cum Laude. Phi Beta Kappa, the nation’s oldest honor society for the liberal arts and sciences, gained 35 new inductees from the Class of 2026.

Many graduates already have their next chapter outlined with plans to expand their impact to communities across the nation and globe. They join the impressive ranks of Centre alumni, with 98% employed or pursuing advanced degrees within a year of graduation. 

Their next adventures include pursuing graduate studies abroad through the Fulbright U.S. Student Program and the Rotary Scholars Program; research at Harvard Medical School, The Mayo Clinic and the National Institutes of Health; a residency at the Pilchuck Glass School; and working for companies like Google, Teach for America and SEARCH, a global leader in Archaeology. 

“The quiet moments of progress, the small steps forward, the times when you keep going when no one notices — those are the moments that matter just as big as the milestone,” said Anthony E. Jones, Centre’s Vice President of Diversity and Inclusion, who delivered the Godspeed to the Class of 2026. “As you leave here today, do not compare your journey to someone else’s. Run your own race. Define success for yourself. And be proud of how far you’ve come. Continue to learn, love and give back.”