Fall Graduate Fete
HCC to recognize fall 2025 graduates
Holyoke Community College will honor its fall semester graduates with a special recognition event on Monday, Dec. 1.
The Fall Graduate Reception will run from 5:30-7:30 p.m. on the HCC main campus, 303 Homestead Ave., beginning in the Leslie Phillips Theater for the official ceremony and continuing with a reception in the Campus Center.
HCC initiated the fall ceremony in 2023 to engage graduates who complete their degrees and certificates in December by the end of the fall semester.
According to the HCC Registrar’s Office, 190 HCC students will be fall 2025 semester graduates. Many of them will transfer to four-year schools for the spring 2026 semester. Although fall graduates are always invited to attend HCC’s formal Commencement ceremony in the spring, in the past, many did not attend.
The goal of the family-friendly event is to celebrate fall graduates and strengthen their connection to HCC in the hopes that they will remain engaged and attend the college’s 79th Commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 30, 2026.
During the first part of the event in the Leslie Phillips Theater, Registrar Allison Wrobel and President George Timmons will offer introductory remarks, followed by two student speakers: psychology major Sachelys Perez of Ware, and liberal arts major Jamal Cumberbatch of Springfield. HCC alum Trudy Monson ’97, also of Holyoke, president of the HCC Alumni Council, will welcome the fall graduates as new members of HCC’s Alumni Association.
About 6:15 p.m., students and their families will be directed to the Campus Center for appetizers, activities, and photo opportunities.
PHOTO: President George Timmons, far left, celebrates Fall 2024 Graduate Reception with a new graduate and her family.
