For Immediate Release
Contact: Wendy Hinton
Director of Advancement Communications
King’s College
(570) 208-8130
wendyhinton@kings.edu

May 6, 2021 – King's President Rev. John Ryan, C.S.C. recently announced to the Class of 2021 that on May 16, 2021, King’s will celebrate Commencement in person with the graduates, their guests, faculty, staff, and administration at the Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza. It is the College's intention to honor its graduates and celebrate their achievements with its traditional in-person ceremony, but with changes in place to comply with safety regulations due to the ongoing pandemic.

There will be two complete ceremonies held that day. The first ceremony will be held at 10 a.m., which will feature graduates who will be awarded an M.S. or B.S. degree. The 3 p.m. ceremony will feature the B.A. and B.S.B.A. degree recipients. Although each graduate will be limited to four guests, both ceremonies will be livestreamed for other family members and friends to enjoy. Faculty and staff attendance is limited to ensure that graduates and their families have preference.

Each ceremony will feature a pre-recorded address by Commencement speaker Dorene Dominguez, the Chairwoman and CEO of Vanir Group of Companies, Inc. Ms. Dominguez earned her bachelor’s degree in finance from the University of Notre Dame and holds a Certificate in Corporate Governance from Harvard University. In addition to her leadership of the Vanir companies, Ms. Dominguez is a community and educational advocate, national business leader, and philanthropist. The College will present Ms. Dominguez with an honorary degree and the citation will be read at the ceremonies.

Ms. Dominguez has a long term commitment to working with and inspiring underserved elementary and high school students that aspire to attend Universities that “may seem to be out their reach”. She is the founder of “The Dominguez Dream”, a foundation in memory of her late father, which serves elementary schools in underserved communities by empowering children to achieve their full potential in Literacy and S.T.E.A.M. (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Math). Through its 12-year concerted effort of implementing 15 essential programs in seven partner schools, Dominguez Dream has served over thirty-five hundred students. She serves or has served on various corporate boards of publicly traded companies including CIT Group CIT Bank NA boards, the KB Home board, and is an active member of the Coca-Cola Hispanic Advisory Council.

The traditional Baccalaureate Mass will be celebrated on Saturday, May 15 at 4 p.m. in the Scandlon Physical Education Center. Graduates will be invited to make reservations on a first come, first reserved basis. Students who have reserved tickets for the Baccalaureate Mass will have an opportunity to secure tickets for family members and friends as well.