{"id":230527,"date":"2025-05-15T06:54:25","date_gmt":"2025-05-15T10:54:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/?p=230527"},"modified":"2025-05-28T11:38:46","modified_gmt":"2025-05-28T15:38:46","slug":"scenes-from-cahnr-commencement-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/2025\/05\/scenes-from-cahnr-commencement-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"CAHNR Commencement 2025: A Day of Pride, Celebration, and New Beginnings"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n

On May 10, 2025, more than 600 students from UConn\u2019s College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources (CAHNR) reached a major academic milestone as they officially became UConn graduates.\u00a0Students were celebrated in true CAHNR fashion, with a horse processional, performance by student acapella singers, and a visit from both Jonathan XIV and XV. With cheers from family, friends, faculty, and staff, the graduates commemorated years of commitment and growth at the 146th Commencement.<\/p>\r\n

\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n

\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n

A Moment of Connection and Tradition<\/h3>\r\n

The festivities began with a celebratory reception at the Student Union, offering graduates and their guests a chance to reconnect and reflect on their time at UConn. Soon after, the group gathered at the Field House to prepare for the traditional procession to the main event.<\/p>\r\n

In a much-loved revival of a pre-pandemic tradition, horses from CAHNR\u2019s equine program led graduates along Hillside Road to Gampel Pavilion, setting the tone for the special ceremony ahead.<\/p>\r\n

\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n

\r\n
\"Students\r\n
Students at a CAHNR reception before 2025 Commencement (Jason Sheldon\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\"Happy\r\n
Students at a CAHNR reception before 2025 Commencement (Jason Sheldon\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\"Smiling\r\n
CAHNR students lining up for 2025 Commencement processional. (Stella Dibernardo\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\"Family\r\n
Karina Cangas ’25 (CAHNR) prior to Commencement. (Jason Sheldon\/UConnPhoto)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\"Horse\r\n
Students from the CAHNR Equine Program leading the student commencement processional. (Jason Sheldon\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n

\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n

\"Students\r\n
CAHNR students proceeding to 2025 Commencement (Jason Sheldon\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n

\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n

A Ceremony to Remember<\/h3>\r\n

Inside Gampel Pavilion, CAHNR faculty and staff joined the graduates for a ceremony filled with encouragement, reflection, and celebration. The event featured remarks from student speaker Eliza Demiri ’25 (Allied Health Sciences) and keynote speaker Rodney Butler ’99 (BUS), Chairman of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation.<\/p>\r\n

Butler expressed the value students can find in being open to where life takes them, whether it is anticipated or not:<\/p>\r\n

\u201cIt’s important to understand in live how much your paths can and will change, regardless of what you plan for. Life rarely follows a straight path, and often the directions we didn’t plan for lead to the most meaningful destinations.”<\/p>\r\n

The program was hosted by Kristen Govoni, associate dean for academic programs, and included additional remarks from Dean Chaubey, Prvosot D’Alleva, and other CAHNR leadership.<\/p>\r\n

\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n

\r\n
\"CAHNR\r\n
CAHNR students are 2025 Commencement. (Stella Dibernardo\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\"Student\r\n
Eliza Demiri ’25 (CAHNR) gives the student Commencement address. (Sydney Herdle\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\"Man\r\n
Rodney Butler ’99 (BUS) provides the 2025 Commencement speech. (Sydney Herdle\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\"University\r\n
From left, Dean Indrajeet Chaubey, Provost Anne D’Alleva, and speaker Chairman of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation Rodney Butler ’99 (BUS). (Sydney Herdle\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\"CAHNR\r\n
CAHNR students at 2025 Commencement (Sydney Herdle\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\"Students\r\n
CAHNR students at 2025 Commencement with Jonathans XIV and XV (Stella Dibernardo\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\"A\r\n
A Minor, Premiere A Cappella Group. Their graduating senior from CAHNR, Benjamin Angus an Environmental Sciences and Environmental and Natural Resources Economics major dressed in a cap and gown (Jason Herdle\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\"Students\r\n
CAHNR students at Commencement 2025 (Stella Dibernardo\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n

\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n

\r\n
\"Happy\r\n
CAHNR student at Commencement 2025. (Stella Dibernardo\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\"Happy\r\n
CAHNR students at Commencement 2025 (Stella Dibernardo\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n

\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n

\"CAHNR\r\n
CAHNR students at Commencement 2025 (Sydney Herdle\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n

\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n

Cheers to the Future<\/h3>\r\n

As the ceremony concluded, the celebration continued outside Gampel Pavilion, where graduates gathered with family and friends to capture the moment with photos and plenty of smiles.<\/p>\r\n

The Class of 2025 leaves UConn with a wealth of knowledge, a foundation of real-world experiences, and lasting memories from their time in CAHNR. Wherever their journeys take them next, their future is bright and their UConn roots remain strong.<\/p>\r\n

\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n

\r\n
\r\n
\"Students
CAHNR students after Commencement 2025 (Jason Sheldon\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n
CAHNR students after Commencement 2025 (Jason Sheldon\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\"CAHNR\r\n
Graduates of the College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources greet their families and friends outside Gampel Pavilion following the college’s Commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 10, 2025. (Sydney Herdle\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\"Students\r\n
CAHNR students after Commencement 2025 (Sydney Herdle\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\"CAHNR\r\n
CAHNR students after Commencement 2025 (Sydney Herdle\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\"CAHNR\r\n
CAHNR students after Commencement 2025 (Sydney Herdle\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n

\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n

\r\n

\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n

Other CAHNR Commencement Coverage<\/h3>\r\n

\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n

Learn more about some of our featured graduates and this year’s Commencement speaker, Rodney Butler ’99.<\/p>\r\n

\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n

\r\n
\r\n
\"Man
\r\n
Rodney Butler, Ahead of CAHNR Commencement Speech, Reflects on Decades Spent Helping His Tribe<\/span><\/strong><\/a><\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\r\n
\r\n

\"Smiling<\/p>\r\n

CAHNR\u2019s Class of 2025<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n

<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last weekend with friends, families, and faculty by their sides, over 600 CAHNR students turned their tassels and embarked on their next chapter<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":127,"featured_media":230583,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"video","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_crdt_document":"","wds_primary_category":0,"wds_primary_series":0,"wds_primary_attribution":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2297,2296,147,2298,2224,2304,2299,2300,2301,2302,2303],"tags":[],"magazine-issues":[],"coauthors":[2140],"class_list":["post-230527","post","type-post","status-publish","format-video","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-agricultural-resource-economics","category-allied-health-sciences","category-alumni","category-animal-science","category-cahnr","category-extension","category-kinesiology","category-natural-resources-environment","category-nutritional-sciences","category-pathobiology-veterinary-science","category-plant-science-landscape-architecture","post_format-post-format-video"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-11 08:42:33","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/230527","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/users\/127"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=230527"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/230527\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":231207,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/230527\/revisions\/231207"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media\/230583"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=230527"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=230527"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=230527"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-issue","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/magazine-issues?post=230527"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=230527"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}