Lebanon Valley College Celebrates 157th Commencement

Key Points:

• Lebanon Valley College celebrated the Class of 2026 with two Commencement ceremonies honoring 393 undergraduate and 215 graduate students.
• Dr. Justin Mierzwicki delivered the undergraduate Commencement address, while LVC Trustee and neurosurgeon Dr. Robert E. Harbaugh '74 spoke at the graduate ceremony.
• LVC recognized recipients of its top annual honors, including student, faculty, adjunct faculty, staff, and educator awards.
• Maddisyn "Maddi" Behney '26 received the H. Anthony Neidig and Gene Bowman Neidig Award, the College's highest student honor.
• Dr. Rachel Albert, Dr. Sandra Fauser, Dr. Ashley McFalls, and Abbie Keith '24, M'27 were also recognized for excellence and impact across the LVC community.

Three hundred ninety-three students in the Lebanon Valley College Class of 2026 celebrated their educational and personal accomplishments during a morning Commencement Ceremony today. Another 215 graduate-level students (master's and doctoral) participated in a separate ceremony at 2 p.m. Both ceremonies were held in the Louis A. Sorrentino '54 Gymnasium.

Dr. Justin Mierzwicki, Associate Provost of Inclusive Excellence and Clinical Associate Professor of Physical Therapy, was the morning's Commencement speaker by virtue of being named the Vickroy Award winner (see below) during the 2025 Commencement Celebration. Dr. Robert E. Harbaugh, LVC Class of 1974, was the Keynote speaker during the afternoon ceremony. Dr. Harbaugh, a member of the LVC Board of Trustees, is the Distinguished Professor and former Chair of the Department of Neurosurgery, Professor in the Department of Engineering Sciences & Mechanics, Penn State University and Penn State College of Medicine.

Along with honoring graduates, LVC revealed the winners of the following major annual awards:

The H. Anthony Neidig and Gene Bowman Neidig Award (LVC's top student award)-Maddisyn "Maddi" Behney '26, a double major in Biochemistry & Molecular Biology and Environmental Science, is applying to Ph.D. programs for Plant Science.

This year's prize was once again made possible thanks to the generosity of Kathy Neidig Calabrese and Tony Calabrese, both LVC Class of 1973, in honor of Kathy's father, Dr. Tony Neidig '43, H'04, and mother, Gene Bowman Neidig.

The Thomas Rhys Vickroy Distinguished Teacher Award (LVC's top honor for a full-time faculty member)-Dr. Rachel Albert, Professor of Psychology and Director of the LVC Baby Lab

The Nevelyn J. Knisley Award (LVC's top part-time or adjunct College faculty member)-Dr. Sandra Fauser, Adjunct Instructor in Education

Dr. Ashley McFalls, Associate Professor of Neuroscience, was awarded the Educator of the Year Award by Student Government members on Friday, April 24, during Dutchmen Day. This honor is bestowed annually on a full-time faculty member who embodies the transformative power of the LVC experience, in and out of the classroom.

Also on April 24, Abbie Keith '24, M'27, Associate Director of Residential Life, received the fourth-annual Administrator or Staff Member of the Year Award. This award is presented to a non-faculty member who has significantly impacted a student's time at LVC.