SU Winter Commencement Monday, December 18

Sara Wolff Lewis	Cynthia Holloway

SALISBURY, MD---Some 457 students receive 65 master’s and 392 bachelor’s degrees during Salisbury University’s 81st year Winter Commencement 2 p.m. Monday, December 18, at the Wicomico Youth & Civic Center.

During the ceremony, the SU Office of Alumni Relations and Annual Giving bestows surprise honors among a handful of faculty with the Faculty Appreciation Award. The Alumni Office also honors one of its own, presenting past alumni board president Sara Wolff Lewis with the Alumni Service Award.

“Volunteering at SU is something I enjoy doing,” she said. “I was involved as a graduate student, and I got so much out of it academically and on the student leadership side that I wanted to give back once I was on the alumni side.”

A 1998 graduate, Lewis has remained active at the University. She served as alumni board president from 2003-2005 and remains a member of the executive board. She also chairs the board’s ad hoc committee for SU’s current capital campaign. She has served on the board’s scholarship, publications, nominations and finance committees, and chaired its Homecoming committee. She has volunteered for many campus programs, including Homecoming, Fun Day, Sea Gull Century, Alumni in the Classroom and SU Day at the Legislature. She also has been a lecturer in SU’s Franklin P. Perdue School of Business. Lewis is a supply planner for Perdue Farms, Inc.

Cynthia Holloway delivers the commencement speech, the culmination of 30 years of anticipation leading to her degree. A non-traditional student, Holloway was unable to attend college upon graduating from high school due to financial constraints. More than a quarter century later, she graduates with a Bachelor of Social Work.  In her speech, she encourages her fellow graduates to follow their dreams and make every moment count.

“Some of you arrived at this moment with little to spare,” she says. “Do not cheapen your life just barely getting by. … Someone in this world needs what you have to offer, your ideas, your discoveries and perhaps even your love. Never forget for one moment that you matter.”

Beyond SU, Holloway serves on the board of directors of Holloway Funeral Home. She is active in the community as a lay leader at Asbury United Methodist Church, a Wicomico County mentor at Fruitland Intermediate School, a junior auxiliary member of Peninsula Regional Medical Center and a board member of Salisbury Urban Ministries.

Among undergraduates, 230 students receive the Bachelor of Science, 144 the Bachelor of Arts, 16 the Bachelor of Fine Arts and two the Bachelor of Social Work. Graduate degrees include Master of Education—22; Master of Arts—19; Master of Business Administration—16; Master of Science—five; and Master of Social Work—three.

Admission to commencement is by ticket only. A reception at the Civic Center follows. For more information call 410-543-6030 or visit the SU Web site at www.salisbury.edu.