Clark University Reveals Plans For 2026 Graduation Ceremony

WORCESTER, MA — One of Worcester's several educational institutions has announced when it will hold its commencement ceremonies and the scholars who will speak at the events.

Clark University will have its 2026 Commencement ceremonies on Monday, May 18, at the DCU Center in downtown Worcester, with two separate events planned to honor graduating students.

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Bachelor’s degree recipients will be recognized at 10 a.m., followed by a 2:30 p.m. ceremony for master’s and doctoral graduates. In addition to celebrating the graduates, two extraordinary individuals will also be awarded, according to Clark President David Fithian.

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Dr. Wendy L. Freedman, a leading astrophysicist known for her groundbreaking work in cosmology, will deliver the address at the undergraduate ceremony. Michael Boyer, professor of physics at Clark, will present Dr. Freedman for the degree of Doctor of Science.

Later on, Sir Andrew Steer, a global leader in climate policy and environmental economics, will speak at the doctoral and master’s degree ceremony at 2:30 p.m.

Steer currently serves as Professor of Practice in Environmental Economics at the London School of Economics, where he also chairs the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, and holds an additional appointment at Georgetown University.

Lou Leonard, dean of Clark’s School of Climate, Environment, and Society, will present Steer for the honorary Doctor of Humane Letters.

President Fithian said the honorees reflect Clark’s mission to connect academic excellence with global impact. “The lives and work of these honorees speak to what is possible when intellectual imagination is matched with rigor, courage, and a deep sense of responsibility to the world beyond oneself. It is especially fitting to recognize them at Commencement," he said.

Founded in 1887, Clark University is a liberal arts-based research university offering more than 30 graduate programs and 33 undergraduate majors.

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