Becoming More: Celebrating SNHU’s Spring Class of 2025

To many, spring is a welcome time of change. Trees sprout new leaves, seeds grow into stems — and students become graduates. This weekend, on May 3-4, that meant downtown Manchester, New Hampshire, was abuzz with excitement for more than 5,000 new Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) degree holders.

No two of these students took the same path to get there, but they all had at least one thing in common. Regardless of the circumstances that brought them to SNHU, their graduation marked a profound transformation. From that moment forward, their futures, or even their identities, could be forever changed. That’s exactly what SNHU’s class of 2025 gathered to celebrate at this spring’s Commencement ceremony — the more that they had become.

"Each of you has your own incredible and unique story to share, your own path. That path has led you to this moment," said SNHU President Lisa Marsh Ryerson. "You've pushed through moments of doubt. You've discovered strengths that you never knew you had. You will all continue to inspire those around you just as you have inspired me and the entire SNHU community."

A Seasonal Snapshot

The SNHU Arena welcomed more than 27,000 friends, family members and supporters over four ceremonies this weekend to recognize SNHU's class of 2025. Graduates ranged from 14 to 82 years old, traveling to New Hampshire from all around the globe.

Some came to SNHU to study on campus and get the traditional college experience. Others took courses online while raising a family and working full-time. There were transfer students who finished what they started after years away from education, military service members studying while deployed, out to sea or on base, and retirees who finally earned the degree they’ve always wanted.

Although not everyone was able to walk the stage in person, the ceremonies marked over 19,000 SNHU conferred degrees in total, including: 

• 2,545 associate degrees
• 11,945 bachelor's degrees
• 4,596 master's degrees
• 19 doctoral degrees

The graduates, including more than 3,600 military-affiliated learners, joined a community of over 280,000 SNHU alumni.

Reflections and Revelations

Student speakers addressed their classmates and guests at each of the ceremonies, beginning with Linh T. Mai '25, a campus student who graduated cum laude with a bachelor's degree in politics and global affairs.

Mai's words honored her family in Vietnam and her mother — a fellow SNHU graduate who tearfully watched Mai speak from the crowd.

"In 2013, my family left everything familiar in Vietnam so my mom could pursue her master’s degree right here at SNHU," Mai said. "Ten years later, I now stand in the very place she once stood, following her footsteps and carrying forward her lessons."

A graduate of SNHU's Master of Business Administration (MBA) program, Tyler Paul Roberts '25MBA spoke at the second ceremony for master's students. To Roberts, earning a master's shaped who he was and what he felt capable of achieving.

"Today is about more than just earning a degree," Roberts said. "It’s about proving to ourselves that we can take on challenges, push through doubt and come out stronger."

He noted that one key trait carried him and his peers to the graduation stage: perseverance. "As we step into the next chapter of our lives — whether into new careers, promotions or entirely different adventures — let’s remember that success isn’t about never failing," he said. "It’s about never quitting."

Taking Back the Narrative

The final two student speakers of the weekend were nontraditional graduates who both rewrote their stories by earning bachelor's degrees well into adulthood.

John Vincent Staudenmeier '25, who graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor's in geosciences, had a longer journey to his diploma than most. He started his first college course in September of 1974, but at the end of his third semester, he left school to join the U.S. Air Force. It wasn't until decades later that he decided to finish what he started.

"Southern New Hampshire University allowed me to pick up where I left off," he said. "Believe me, it's never too late."

Staudenmeier also asked his graduating class to turn to each other and acknowledge their accomplishment with three simple words: "We did it."

In the final ceremony, David V. Shelton Sr. '25, a cum laude bachelor's in psychology graduate who traveled all the way from Alaska, reflected on something he wrote in 2022 when he first started his degree.

"Today, I start a journey in college," Shelton read. "I am a 49-year-old man with zero college credits, staring at my computer screen and wondering — am I smart enough? Can I really do this?"

Those worries that were once ahead of him are now in the rear-view mirror. Through proving that his fears were unfounded, he found a new sense of confidence.

"To my fellow graduates — wasn’t it worth it?" he said. "Doesn’t it give you goosebumps thinking about how far we’ve come?"

Moving Forward

At the end of the ceremonies, SNHU Alumni Board Vice President Shawn Burnham '09 encouraged students to get involved in the alumni community and initiated the tradition of turning the tassel.

"Congratulations and good luck on your next chapter," he said. "We can't wait to see all that you'll accomplish next."

Hundreds of SNHU faculty members and staff then greeted the new alumni with applause, noisemakers and pom-poms in a long clap line as they filed out of the arena. It's an SNHU tradition that serves as a final victory lap. As they passed the cheering crowd and made their way back out into the world, many graduates had tears in their eyes.

After a jam-packed weekend, there are still more celebrations to come. Over 5,000 students are expected to attend SNHU's virtual commencement ceremony on May 24, 2025 at 3 p.m. ET. Sunny Naughton '25G, who earned a master's in psychology with a concentration in child and developmental psychology, will be the student speaker.

For each graduate, getting a degree is a step in an ongoing journey. The opportunities they take and the challenges they accept from here forward can further transform their lives and shape the future.

"This degree is not the finish line," Shelton said. "It’s the launch pad."

Mars Girolimon '21 '23G is a staff writer at Southern New Hampshire University where they earned their bachelor's and master's, both in English and creative writing. In addition to their work in higher education, Girolimon's short fiction is published in the North American Review, So It Goes by The Kurt Vonnegut Museum & Library, X-R-A-Y and more. They're currently writing their debut novel, which was Longlisted for The First Pages Prize. Connect with them on LinkedIn.