Claremont Graduate University (CGU) will host its 98th Commencement Ceremony on May 17, 2025, at the Harvey S. Mudd Quadrangle in Claremont, California. This annual event celebrates the academic achievements of CGU's graduating students as they transition to the next phase of their professional and personal journeys.
The ceremony will feature inspiring speeches, the conferral of degrees, and time-honored traditions that make CGU’s commencement a memorable experience. Following the ceremony, school receptions will be held at designated locations, providing an opportunity for graduates to celebrate with their peers, professors, and loved ones.
Dr. Kate Darling, a leading expert in robotics and human-robot interaction, will serve as the keynote speaker. Dr. Darling is a research scientist at MIT’s Media Lab and leads ethics and society initiatives at the Boston Dynamics AI Institute. Her work explores the emotional bonds people form with lifelike machines and informs technology design and public policy decisions regarding human-robot relationships.
The event is open to graduates, their families, and friends. Attendees are encouraged to arrive early to secure seating and participate in the full range of commencement activities.
Categories
Speakers(3)
Joleen Archibald
CEO at Leadership Archways
Joleen Archibald specializes in organizational change and leadership development. She is the CEO of Leadership Archways, which focuses on enhancing organizational and management effectiveness, as well as Snow to Surf Alliance, a nonprofit dedicated to education and local conservation efforts. Passionate about inclusive learning, Joleen uses nature-based education techniques to foster social and emotional growth, particularly within neurodivergent communities.
Kate Darling
Research Scientist at Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Dr. Kate Darling is a leading expert in the evolving role of robotics in everyday life, serving as a research scientist at MIT’s Media Lab and a lead for ethics & society at the Boston Dynamics AI Institute. Her groundbreaking studies on social robotics and human-robot interaction explore the emotional bonds people form with lifelike machines. Her work is shaping and guiding technology design and public policy decisions on the evolving relationships between humans and robots, tackling the pressing questions engineers, lawmakers, and society must address in the coming years.
Kendall Hutchison Acker
Kendall Acker is a cross-border Canadian scholar whose work explores the intersections of historical narratives, Indigenous representation, and American tourism. She is currently completing her Master’s degree in American History and Museum Studies at Claremont Graduate University. Her thesis, 'The Price Tag of a 5-Star Culture: Cultural Performance and the Politics of Luxury in Oʻahu Hotels,' examines how luxury hotels in Hawai‘i curate Native Hawaiian experiences in ways that perpetuate settler-colonial ideologies and obscure the lived realities of Hawaiian people under American statehood.
Event Details
- Date
- May 17, 2025
- Location
- 🇺🇸 Claremont, United States
- Harvey S. Mudd Quadrangle
- Pricing
- Free
- Audience
- Graduates, their families, and friends.