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Steven Engborg received a master of science degree in secondary education.
In all, 65 graduate students and 1,162 undergraduate students earned their degrees.
Nicholas Lawson, director of field human resources for Doctors Without Borders/Medecins Sans Frontieres, was awarded an honorary doctorate of humane letters.
Lawson spoke of the organization's core principles of service, independence, impartiality, neutrality, ethics and engagement, and described his early years with MSF, when he faced the challenge of bringing medical supplies to civilians in Afghanistan caught in the crossfire of that nation's civil war. In the end, he said MSF's focus was simple: to "alleviate the suffering of vulnerable people in crisis."
His charge to Eastern's 2014 graduating class was equally simple: "What place does service and engagement in the public realm have in the careers we dream for ourselves? Is that activism? Is it volunteerism? Is it civics? Will it be a lifelong professional choice? . . . You will be richer than you can possibly imagine if you do actually make that choice."
Other speakers included Eastern President Elsa Nunez; Catherine Smith, commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development, who represented the Board of Regents for Higher Education; Senior Class President Zachary Yeager; and Brittany Lane '14, who delivered the Senior Class Address. Other members of the platform party included Gregory Gray, president of the Board of Regents; Willimantic Mayor Ernie Eldridge; and other Eastern officials.
Eastern Connecticut State University is the state's public liberal arts university and serves 5,400 students each year on its Willimantic campus and at satellite locations. A predominantly residential campus, Eastern offers more than 30 majors and 50 minors while emphasizing a strong liberal arts foundation grounded in applied learning experiences.
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