A total of 138 students, 64 undergraduates and 74 graduate students, earned degrees in July and August
WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. (Aug. 28, 2018)– Monmouth University’s 2018 Distinguished Teacher Award recipient Christopher S. DeRosa, Ph.D., delivered the summer commencement address to 97 university graduates who participated in the ceremony on Tuesday, Aug. 28 at Pollak Theatre.
DeRosa, an associate professor of history and anthropology, urged graduates to practice “civil disagreement” in an increasingly divisive political climate. He noted the historical dangers of such a division, particularly in the way it can drive the nation into living in separate realities. “That’s not tenable, over the long haul,” he said.
DeRosa encouraged students to be “trustees of democracy” and to interact with fellow citizens in a manner that assumes good faith, patriotism, and humanity.
DeRosa joined Monmouth University’s faculty in 2003. He teaches courses on the history of warfare and politics and is the author of “Political Indoctrination in the U.S. Army.” DeRosa was awarded the 2018 Distinguished Teacher Award, which is the highest teaching award Monmouth offers and is given to one faculty member a year. He earned his bachelor’s in history at Columbia University and his Ph.D. in history at Temple University.
The summer commencement ceremony recognized graduate and undergraduate students who completed their degree requirements in July and August. Monmouth University President Grey Dimenna congratulated the graduates, noting that they were not the “last” graduating class of the 2017-2018 academic year, but in fact the first graduating class of the 2018-2019 academic year which began on July 1.
“No matter what your academic journey was at Monmouth, we are very proud of you,” said Dimenna. “Your family and friends, your professors, coaches, advisors, and mentors, all celebrate the effort that you put forth to earn your degree.”
The 97 graduates—38 undergraduates and 59 graduate students—who attended are the first to participate in a summer commencement ceremony. They are also graduating in a milestone year—the 85thAnniversary of Monmouth University.
For more information on Monmouth University’s commencement ceremony, please visit www.monmouth.edu/commencement.