Congratulations, 2019 Graduates!

CONGRATULATIONS, 2019 GRADUATES!

Kettering College conferred degrees and certificates upon 270 students at commencement ceremonies on April 22 at the Benjamin and Marian Schuster Center in downtown Dayton. This year’s ceremony celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Class of 1969 — Kettering College’s first graduating class. The keynote speaker was Carl Wilkens, co-founder and director of World Outside My Shoes, a nonprofit educational and professional development organization. Wilkens, who previously served in Rwanda as the head of Adventist Development and Relief Agency International, shared a message of respect, empathy, and inclusion.

During the ceremony, Kettering College President Nate Brandstater awarded 26 associate degrees and 155 bachelor’s degrees, including 94 Bachelor of Science in Nursing degrees. Kettering College graduated its first class from the healthcare management program, with four students receiving this degree. Twenty-eight students graduated with the Occupational Therapy Doctorate, and 58 students graduated with the Master of Physician Assistant Studies.

FEATURED

1 | Occupational therapy graduates Erica McGoogan (left) and Kristen Schenkelberg (right) walk into the Schuster Center after their pinning ceremony earlier in the day.

2 | Winelia Flores-Ortiz, a respiratory care graduate, was the 2019 George B. Nelson Award recipient. The award recognizes an undergraduate who exemplifies the mission of Kettering College and lives out that mission as part of his or her daily life.

3 | Three respiratory care graduates (left to right), Donnice Alexander, Winelia Flores-Ortiz, and Amanda Foster, smile for the camera.

4 | Kristen Barone, medical sonography graduate, spoke to the 2019 graduates in her address. She reflected on her experience during an international medical mission trip to Belize and how it changed her life and perspective.

5 | Graduates decorate their graduation caps with inspirational messages in celebration of all their accomplishments.

6 | Carl Wilkens was the keynote speaker for the commencement ceremony. He spoke about his time in Rwanda as the last American who stayed in the country during the 1994 Rwanda genocide.

7 | Occupational therapy doctoral graduates pose for a class photo before the commencement ceremony.

8 | Alex Gray, a human biology graduate, lines up before the commencement ceremony at the Benjamin and Marian Schuster Center.

Kettering College Class of 1969 Celebrates 50th Graduating Anniversary

9 | Ruthie Gohl ‘69, nursing graduate and featured alumni speaker, spoke about the foundation Kettering College laid for her in her health care career. She recently started a free clinic in Battle Ground, Washington.

10 | Gohl converses with another alum during a special event celebrating the 50th anniversary of the class of 1969.

11 | Members from the graduating class of 1969 were honored during the commencement ceremony.