By: Jake Zabski
As commencement gets closer, the speaker for the ceremony has been formally announced.
Father John Denning, C.S.C, announced on April 15 that the speaker for commencement this year is alumna, Judith A. Salerno, MD from the Class of 1973.
Dr. Salerno is the president of The New York Academy of Medicine and recently came out of retirement to serve as a doctor on the frontlines during the Covid-19 pandemic. She serves at Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan where she has been in close contact with Covid-19 patients since the start of the pandemic.
Dr. Salerno previously has given speeches at Stonehill, most recently in 2018 for the Alumnae Summit, and was also awarded the Outstanding Alumnus Award in 2017.
In an interview with Martin McGovern, the college’s Director of Communications & Media Relations, Dr. Salerno noted how the beginning of the pandemic was quite overwhelming for her.
She had to not only get back into being hands-on in the medical field but had to learn how to work with the new PPE as well as seeing many Covid patients on a regular basis.
“Once I started the work, I knew I was contributing and using a skill set that I have and that was needed-that realization gave me the peace to continue to do this,” Salerno said.
Dr. Salerno will also be receiving an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters as an acknowledgment for her efforts as a frontline worker.
Julianne Webster is a senior health science major and is looking forward to hearing her speech.
“As an aspiring healthcare professional, I am inspired by Dr. Salerno’s work throughout her career, especially by her courage to work during the pandemic. Our healthcare workers, now more than ever, are working tirelessly to care for the population. Dr. Salerno’s career is a prime example of how multidimensional an incredible career in healthcare can be, and I truly look forward to hearing from her during my commencement,” Webster said.
Sophia Anderle, a senior biology major said that Dr. Salerno is the epitome of what it means to be a Stonehill alum.
“It is inspiring that Dr. Salerno will be the speaker, she epitomizes the end result of a Stonehill education where she is ‘measuring success by her impact on others which is the main reason I decided to come and to stay at Stonehill,” Anderle said.
For more information and updates regarding commencement, refer to the Commencement 2021 page on Stonehill’s website: https://www.stonehill.edu/plan-your-visit/featured-events/commencement-2021/.
The commencement ceremony will be held on May 15 at 10:00 AM at the W.B. Mason Stadium.
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