UMass Lowell Class of 2021 to Graduate in Person

04/20/2021

Contacts for media: Christine Gillette, 978-934-2209 or Christine_Gillette@uml.edu and Nancy Cicco, 978-934-4944 or Nancy_Cicco@uml.edu

LOWELL, Mass. – UMass Lowell will honor the nearly 4,600 members of the Class of 2021 both in person and virtually.

Graduates who have earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees will be honored in person via a series of brief, small ceremonies on Thursday, May 13 and Friday, May 14 at the Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell. At these ceremonies for recipients of bachelor’s and master’s degrees, graduates, accompanied by two guests, will walk into the Tsongas Center, receive their diploma covers and have an official photo taken before departing. An in-person ceremony for those receiving doctoral degrees is planned for Wednesday, May 12.

Strict social distancing and other safety measures will be in place during all in-person Commencement events.

In addition to the in-person portion of the celebration, UMass Lowell will present online virtual Commencement ceremonies featuring a range of notable participants:

Deepak Chopra – Chopra will receive UMass Lowell’s highest honor, a doctor of humane letters, as well as speak to graduates. Founder of The Chopra Foundation, a nonprofit entity for research on well-being and humanitarianism, and Chopra Global, a modern-day health company at the intersection of science and spirituality, Chopra is a world-renowned pioneer in integrative medicine and personal transformation. Chopra is a clinical professor of family medicine and public health at the University of California, San Diego and serves as a senior scientist with Gallup Organization. He is the author of more than 91 books translated into over 43 languages, including numerous New York Times bestsellers. For 30 years, Chopra has been at the forefront of the meditation revolution and his latest book, “Total Meditation” is aimed at helping readers achieve new dimensions of stress-free and joyful living. TIME magazine has described Chopra as “one of the top 100 heroes and icons of the century.”

Ron Insana – Insana will also receive an honorary doctor of humane letters degree and speak to graduates. Insana is a senior analyst and contributor to CNBC and MSNBC networks, where he discusses the most pressing economic and market issues of the day. He also serves as a senior adviser to Schroders, N.A., a $600 billion global investment management firm, where he provides economic and market analysis to Schroders’ North American team and to clients of the firm around the United States, and delivers “The Market Scoreboard Report” to radio stations around the country, twice daily. The author of four books, he has also written for Money magazine and USA Today. The former CEO of Insana Capital Partners, he was named one of the “Top 100 Business News Journalists of the 20th Century” and was nominated for a News and Documentary Emmy for his role in NBC’s coverage of 9/11.

Noelle Lambert – A native of Londonderry, N.H., Lambert had a standout freshman lacrosse season at UMass Lowell, earning America East All-Rookie team honors. During the following summer, Lambert suffered a life-changing injury, resulting in the amputation of her left leg above the knee. Lambert never let this severe injury defeat her and returned to the lacrosse field in April 2018, just 18 months after her injury, where she caught a pass in front of the net and fired a shot past the goalie for a goal. After graduating in 2019, Lambert made the switch from lacrosse to track and field for the U.S Paralympic National Team. She placed fourth in the 100-meter race at the World Para Athletics championship meet, setting a U.S. record for the race, which earned her a spot on Team USA that will compete in the Paralympics in Tokyo in 2021. In 2018, Lambert founded The Born to Run Foundation, which aims to provide amputees with prosthetics that will allow them to run again. Her dedication has earned her prestigious awards including the Boston Celtics’ Heroes Among Us Award, the America East Inspiration Award and most recently the L’Oreal Paris Women of Worth National Honoree.

In addition, the Chancellor’s Medal for Public Service and Civic Engagement will be presented to representatives of the Market Basket supermarket chain in recognition of the 104 years the business has served the region. From a single location in Lowell’s Acre neighborhood, the company has grown to 84 stores employing more than 25,000 people. The company is well known for its generous profit-sharing plan, and for two charitable foundations supporting hospitals, educational institutions, community development groups, art organizations as well as other varied institutions in need throughout the Northeast, including UMass Lowell, where the company has been a major contributor of student scholarships.

The student Commencement address will be delivered by Jamie Smorczewski of Danvers, a U.S. Army veteran who is graduating with a master’s degree in security studies.

Other Commencement speakers and participants are scheduled to include: UMass Lowell Chancellor Jacquie Moloney, UMass President Marty Meehan, UMass Lowell Provost Joseph Hartman, UMass System Trustee and UMass Lowell graduate Mary Burns and Lowell Mayor John Leahy.

Andrew Marshall of Boxford, a contestant on NBC’s “The Voice” who is graduating from UMass Lowell with a degree in music business, will perform the national anthem.

William Moylan, UMass Lowell Distinguished University Professor and architect of the university’s renowned sound recording technology program, will be the speaker at the May 12 ceremony at which doctoral degrees will be presented.

More details on UMass Lowell Commencement are available at www.uml.edu/commencement.

UMass Lowell is a national research university offering its more than 18,000 students bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in business, education, engineering, fine arts, health, humanities, sciences and social sciences. UMass Lowell delivers high-quality educational programs and personal attention from leading faculty and staff, all of which prepare graduates to be leaders in their communities and around the globe. www.uml.edu