Loyola celebrates Class of 2022 at Commencement ceremony

Loyola University Maryland celebrated the Class of 2022 at the University’s 169th Commencement during a ceremony at M&T Bank Stadium in downtown Baltimore on Saturday, May 14, 2022. Approximately 1,200 students walked across the stage to mark the completion of their bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees during the ceremony.

The Commencement address was delivered by Anisya Fritz, Ph.D., ’85, entrepreneur, business strategist, and humanitarian. She received a doctor of humane letters, honoris causa, from Loyola.

“I know from visiting campus and spending time with some of you last month that the state of our world and our planet are on the forefront of your minds. I know that whatever you do or wherever you go, you want to leave it better,” Fritz said in her address. “You are already contributing in so many ways—working on voter registration, donating your skills and expertise to kids in challenging circumstances, going on to not-for-profits as your first job. This gives me great hope. The world desperately needs the optimism, commitment, education and values you bring.”

Terrence Sawyer, J.D., president of Loyola, offered the Class of 2022 an encouraging, inspiring message to carry with them from the day. This was Sawyer’s first Commencement ceremony as president of Loyola.

“The reality is that what you have been through will make you stronger and more resilient. You will be more compassionate and more appreciative,” Sawyer told the Class of 2022. “You will value your relationships more deeply and work with even greater conviction to build community—just as you have at Loyola. With your Jesuit education, those traits will be strengthened as you go out into the world. You are stronger, wiser, bolder, and better-prepared for the future.”

Samantha Howath, ’22, a communication major who graduated in January and is working as an assistant account executive for Marino in New York, addressed her classmates during the ceremony. Read more about Loyola’s graduating Greyhounds.

“Whenever I stopped by my professors’ offices, they showed genuine care for my goals. During the pandemic, professors checked in on students and allowed us to have vulnerable conversations. They became mentors who pushed us to take advantage of opportunities and helped us believe in ourselves,” Howath said. “After all that we’ve overcome and accomplished, I trust that my peers and I have the resilience to adapt in an ever-changing world while maintaining our Jesuit foundation. Loyola has become a home away from home that we will always treasure.”

At the ceremony, The Loyola School received the Milch Award; Amanda M. Thomas, Ph.D., received the Newman Medal; The Mount Saint Agnes College Alumnae Association including all the graduates of Mount Saint Agnes College received the Carroll Medal. Read more about this year’s recipients.