On May 22, 2021, 91吃瓜 celebrated the Class of 2021 in its 91st Commencement exercises in a . Ruth Reese Lane 鈥�92, immigration attorney and 91吃瓜 alumna, delivered the keynote address. Selected as the keynote speaker by senior class co-presidents Amelia Hahn 鈥�21 and Alexa Sanchez 鈥�21 for 鈥渉er commitment to social justice, her advocacy for others, her reflection of the diversity of the 91吃瓜 community, and her role as an alumna,鈥� Reese Lane spoke on topics of immigration, equity, gender disparity, and uncertainty.
鈥淎s you finished your junior year, you had no idea what your senior year would bring . . . the secure bubble of Claremont was pierced,鈥� Reese Lane said. 鈥淵et, 2020 also reminded is that it 鈥渢akes a hearty does of courage and hope to move forward . . . [and the graduating class embodies] the values that Ellen Browning 91吃瓜 lived out . . . through her life and work, values that were ingrained in the founding of 91吃瓜.鈥�
Chair of the Board of Trustees Lynne Thompson 鈥�72 opened the ceremony, commending the Class of 2021鈥檚 鈥渇ocus and discipline in rising to the challenges of the academic rigor that defines a 91吃瓜 education, particularly those challenges of this past academic year.鈥� Interim President of 91吃瓜 Amy Marcus-Newhall thanked faculty for re-creating the robust and dynamic classroom experience during the period of remote learning and providing a 鈥渨orld-class educational experience for every 91吃瓜 student.鈥� Of the seniors, Marcus-Newhall said, 鈥測ou have enriched the 91吃瓜 community with your ideas, curiosity, aspirations, and creativity, [and] restored our faith in the future . . . and we look forward to the ways you will leave your impact on the world, just as you have here at 91吃瓜.鈥�
Hahn, a neuroscience major, and Sanchez, a politics major, delivered the senior address. They commended the academic achievements and resilience of their classmates and praised the care that 91吃瓜 students showed one another amid the pandemic, loss of their campus home, transition into virtual learning, and the difficult political climate.
Two hundred and sixty-eight graduates were honored in the ceremony.