Class of 2026 Celebrates Spring Commencement in the Heart of Fenway

Photos by Joshua Touster

The sounds of Bruno Mars and Tate McRae filtered through excited chatter in a colorfully lit room adorned with vibrant, New Orleans-inspired artwork. Outside, the sky was sunny, despite forecasts of rain to fall upon the historic Fenway area of Boston on Thursday.

But the music was prerecorded, and the floor often reserved for mosh pits was instead occupied by a sea of black caps and gowns. As Wentworth Institute of Technology students robed and lined up in the House of Blues, their friends and families were waiting across Lansdowne Street in the beautiful MGM Music Hall.

The new locations proved a smash hit as Spring Commencement 2026 provided memorable moments and plenty of pride.

Led by Institute Marshal Jenn Kosses, Dean of Students and Associate Vice President of Student Affairs, Wentworth's newest graduates filed into the multilevel MGM Music Hall. Board Chair Rose Conti called the ceremony to order, declaring the Spring Commencement in the 122nd year of Wentworth Institute of Technology officially underway. Sonia Abdel-Fattah, Architecture '26, then delivered a stirring rendition of the National Anthem, following a processional led by the Boston Fire Department Honor Guard.

President Mark A. Thompson reflected on the weight of the moment and the world graduates are entering during his address.

"Of all my duties as President, the one I enjoy most is celebrating the hard work that led you here today, and every accomplishment along the way," Thompson said. "Today is your day, and this is your moment."

He encouraged graduates to look back at how far they'd come and beyond Wentworth at the opportunities ahead, while acknowledging the distinct climate facing this year's class, particularly the rapid rise of artificial intelligence and a broader backdrop of economic and geopolitical uncertainty.

"The conversation around AI is loud, and often anxious," Thompson told those gathered. "But I want you to leave here today knowing that the graduates of Wentworth are not bystanders in that story. You are builders. You are the ones who will decide how these tools get designed, applied, and governed. That is not a small thing."

Thompson then presented this year's Beatty Award to Caleb H. Kinscheck of the Computer Science program. The honor is given annually for outstanding scholarship and named for Dr. H. Russell Beatty, the third Principal and first President of Wentworth.

Delivering the student address was Sarah Carpenter, Master of Architecture '26, Architecture '25. She traced her own arc from her first studio class to the stage at MGM.

"Five years ago, this would have been my worst nightmare," she said. "I was the awkward homeschooled kid who showed up in 2021, straight out of the woods of New Hampshire, barely able to speak in front of a group, let alone make eye contact."

What changed things for her, she said, was Wentworth and the people in it. She spoke of learning "that being quiet is not the absence of confidence, but the ability to truly listen to others," and described the university as a second home built upon late nights, shared coffee, and never-ending encouragement.

"A slightly dysfunctional, sleep-deprived family who debates sandwich rankings at unholy hours, but a family nonetheless," she said. "We grew together. We pushed each other, supported each other, and became who we are because we did it side by side."

Carpenter urged her classmates to carry forward the idea that their strength is "borrowed, shared, and multiplied by every person who believed in us when we couldn't believe in ourselves." She pointed to the interdisciplinary nature of Wentworth students as the very thing that makes them capable of meeting what's next.

"The world is waiting for us, and yes, challenges lie ahead," she said. "But we've learned something here that most people never learn: how to see possibilities where others see obstacles. How to create beauty in broken places. How to listen before we speak, and lift others as we climb."

She closed with a charge that drew cheers from across the hall. "Watch out, world," she said. "We're not just stepping into the future. We're here to shape it."

The keynote address was delivered by Vickie Alani, Managing Director and Principal of the Boston studio of Perkins&Will, a member of the Wentworth Board of Trustees, and the day's first honorary degree recipient. Trained as both an architect and an interior designer, Alani has spent more than three decades shaping academic, multifamily residential, hospitality, and corporate environments, and is internationally recognized for her expertise in housing and residential design.

Alani built her remarks around the themes of optimism, imagination, and resilience, anchoring them in her own story. Born in Baghdad to a family of doctors, she described how her parents fled Iraq under dramatic circumstances when she was seven, restarted their careers in England, and ultimately rebuilt their lives again in Detroit after the U.S. government offered green cards to foreign-trained physicians in 1970.

"I am an immigrant. An American. A daughter of doctors who rebuilt their lives from scratch, twice, in countries whose languages were not their own," Alani said. "I know what it means to start over. I know what it means to work for everything you love."

That, she told the graduates, is the foundation of the work many of them have chosen.

"Everyone in this room who has chosen a career in architecture, interior design, industrial design, or a design-related field has already answered [the question of what comes next], at least in one fundamental way," she said. "You have chosen work that is, by its very nature, optimistic."

She charged the class to protect that optimism against the forces that would erode it, including tight budgets, difficult clients, long timelines, and cynical colleagues.

"Be the optimist in the room," she said. "Not naively, because you've been trained too well for that, but persistently."

She closed by returning to her own improbable path from Baghdad to the podium at MGM Music Hall.

"You can do anything. And everything," she said. "Go design something beautiful and amazing."

Thompson presented Alani's honorary degree, honoring her "visionary contributions to the built environment, passionate advocacy for women in design, and deep and enduring commitment to the students and mission of this university," and conferring upon her the degree of Doctor in Architecture, honoris causa.

Alani was joined by two honorary degree recipients drawn from Wentworth's own alumni community.

Doug Karam, Class of 1983, founder of Boston-based construction consulting firm KV Associates and current Vice Chair of the Wentworth Board of Trustees, was recognized for more than four decades of industry leadership and his steady hand in guiding the university's long-term strategic footprint, including the development of a new first-year residence hall.

Dave Wahlstrom, Class of 1980, was honored for 45 years of service to Wentworth, most recently as Vice President for Business. Wahlstrom was a driving force behind Wentworth's transformation into a residential university, helping shape the residence halls at 525, 555, and 610 Huntington Avenue, the Center for Engineering, Innovation and Sciences, and Sweeney Field. He also helped establish the STRIVE Program and build the university's enduring relationships with the Mission Hill community and the City of Boston.

Both Karam and Wahlstrom received the degree of Doctor in Construction Management, honoris causa.

Executive Vice President and Provost Sophia Maggelakis presided over the presentation of diplomas, calling the deans of each of Wentworth's five schools to the podium to present their graduates.

For those graduates, the significance of the moment was plain.

"It's been a long four years and, you know, it's exciting that we made it here," said Jason Dank, a Computer Science graduate heading to the Fidelity Investments Private Equity team as a software engineer. He cited his senior project, a CAPTCHA replacement built using computer vision with MediaPipe, as a highlight of his time at Wentworth.

Maggie Stahl, Architecture '26, spent four years as an orientation leader and coordinator. Commencement for her carried a bittersweet weight. "I'm really proud of the impact that I've had at orientation," she said. Asked for her advice to incoming students, she said, "Make as many friends as possible. Get involved. Do as many things as you can. It's how so many people make connections."

Master of Architecture graduates and Wentworth lacrosse teammates Felicity Gonzalez and Lily Cohen reflected on balancing their sport with their studio workload. "Definitely a lot of work to be a student athlete and in Architecture specifically," Cohen said. "But it was really rewarding. We had a lot of fun. No regrets."

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