Onondaga Community College will celebrate its 63rd commencement ceremony this Saturday, May 16, at 11 a.m. in the SRC Arena. A total of 679 students completing their coursework in either the spring 2026 or summer 2026 semesters are eligible to participate. The ceremony can be viewed live on OCC’s Facebook page and YouTube channel. The entire production crew will consist of current and past OCC Broadcast Media Communications students and faculty.
Each year, OCC selects a graduating student to deliver the commencement address. This year’s student speaker is Kierra Yager. She’s a member of the Onondaga Nation’s Beaver Clan who left high school before later earning her GED. She began attending OCC in the summer of 2024 as part of the Educational Opportunity Program’s Residential Pre-freshman Summer Institute. That period of adjustment set the stage for her to become a valued member of the campus community, working in the Counseling & Community Care Hub, serving as a resident assistant in the residence hall, and becoming president of the Native Club. She’s a first-generation college student who plans to continue her education and become a pediatric clinical psychologist.
During commencement, honorary degrees will be awarded to the following outstanding citizens:
- SUNY Honorary Degree – Oren R. Lyons - Faithkeeper for the Onondaga Nation Council of Chiefs, upholding traditional Haudenosaunee culture; instrumental in establishing the U.N. Working Group on Indigenous Populations and advancing the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples; All-American lacrosse goalie at Syracuse University in the 1950s who co-founded the Haudenosaunee Nationals lacrosse team; Professor Emeritus of American Studies at the University at Buffalo; published author focused on Native American history and environmental issues.
- OCC Honorary Degree - Joe Cecile - Cecile retired from the Syracuse Police Department last December after serving for more than 40 years – the last 3-and-a-half years as Chief of Police. He attended Corcoran High School, OCC, and Syracuse University.
- OCC Honorary Degree - Stephen Fournier - Fournier has been the President of Key Bank’s Central New York Market for more than two decades, where he led the development of the Key Bank Community Scholarship. He has served on numerous community-focused boards while working tirelessly to make Central New York a better place for all.
- OCC Honorary Degrees - Kevin and Kathy LaGrow '79 - The LaGrow’s have built a 40-year legacy of dedicated philanthropy and early childhood education. They found Learn As You Grow Child Care Centers, directly shaping the lives of countless children in the Syracuse area. They now give back to the community through Off-Peak Ministries, which assists charitable organizations during off-peak times of the year.
Before commencement, Saturday at 9 a.m., we will host a Nurse Pinning ceremony in Storer Auditorium for 44 graduating students. The ceremony is a symbolic welcome into the Nursing profession. May is National Nurses Month. Across the United States, community colleges annually produce more than 50 percent of all new nurses and other healthcare workers.
Congratulations to our class of 2026!
