On May 24, Cabrillo College honored 1,520 graduates and transfer students in an in-person graduation ceremony on a sunny day where proud families filled the Carl Conely stadium on campus in Aptos.
A record 53.2% of the graduating class is Latinx, and one graduate, McCay Ruddick, was selected to receive one of the 60 Jack Kent Cooke undergraduate transfer scholarships awarded nationwide.
The award enables recipients to complete their undergraduate degrees at four-year institutions with minimal financial burden. Ruddick plans to major in computer science at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.
He is one of more than 330 graduates and non-graduates intend to transfer to four-year universities.
To see a replay of the ceremony, go to: www.cabrillo.edu/events/graduation-ceremony/ or Cabrillo’s YouTube channel.
Cabrillo’s 65th graduating class included 1,196 receiving A.A. degrees and 439 A.S. degrees.
And 368 students earned an associate’s degree for transfer, a special degree offered by California Community Colleges for those transferring to CSU. Students who earn this degree and meet the CSU minimum eligibility requirements are guaranteed admission to a CSU.
“I’m incredibly proud of our students,” said Cabrillo President and Superintendent Dr. Matt Wetstein. “This year, more than 53% of our graduates are Latinx, and more than half of our students earning associate’s degrees for transfer into a CSU are Latinx, meaning they are graduating and transferring at a higher rate. As a federally-designated Hispanic Serving Institution, our dedication to increasing the ‘servingness’ of our Latinx students is paying off with impressive student success achievements.”
Cabrillo graduates earned 301 certificates of achievement and 88 skills certificates.
Graduates ranged in age from 16 (a dual-enrolled high school junior) to 87. The average age was 28.
In this class, 63.7% are women and 34.5% are men.
There were 176 graduates with a perfect 4.0 grade-point average.
Another 242 students graduated with high honors (3.75-3.99 grade-point average), 310 students with honors (3.5-3.74 grade-point average) and 486 students with honorable mentions (3.0-3.49 grade-point average).
A notable 38 students will graduate as Honors Scholars, students who have completed all required courses for transfer to a four-year college or university and at least 15 units of honors coursework with a grade-point average of 3.4 or higher.
Students are transferring widely to competitive universities including: Cal Poly SLO, Michigan, Santa Clara University, UCLA, UC Berkeley, UC Davis, UC Irvine, UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara, and UC Santa Cruz.
Scholarships
The Peggy and Jack Baskin Award is given each year to a Cabrillo graduate in the science, technology, engineering, and math fields. This year’s recipient is Shivani Patel, who will transfer to UCSC and major in politics.
The UC Santa Cruz Karl S. Pister Award is an up to $20,000 scholarship given to a Cabrillo student planning to transfer to UCSC. This year’s winner is Alma Soledad Leonor-Sanchez.
Cabrillo’s graduation ceremony began with a processional of the Governing Board, faculty, and staff, and members of the graduating class. Vice President of Student Services Amy Lehman-Sexton welcomed all. The Cabrillo Chorale, directed by Cheryl Anderson, sang the national anthem. The Cabrillo Mariachi Ensemble, directed by Rudolph Vega, performed La Colebra, (Rubén Flores) and My Way/Ami Manera (Paul Anka/Vicente Fernandez).
Cabrillo President and Superintendent Dr. Matthew Wetstein, Cabrillo Faculty Senate President Anna Zagorska, and Cabrillo Classified Employees Union Second Vice President Sara Castillo made congratulatory remarks.
President of the Student Senate Denisa Rozsypalova, Student Trustee Yefry Mata-Diaz, Karl S. Pister Scholarship Award Recipient Alma Soledad Leonor-Sanchez shared their experiences.
Dr. Travaris Harris, vice president of instruction, presented the graduating class, and Cabrillo Board President Dan Rothwell conferred the degrees as each student’s name was announced.