Following a performance of the song "Golden" by GVSU a capella group, Euphoria, the ceremony's guest speaker, John Keating, '79, shared a story from his time as a GVSU student when a simple invitation and act of kindness from a fellow student changed the trajectory of his life.

"I had just found the chance to work at the student-run radio station. It had taken all my mustered-up courage to walk in and ask to be involved," he recalled. "An upperclassman, the general manager of the station, asked simply, 'What are you doing?'

'Nothing,' I said.

"He said, 'C'mon, let's go'."

The conversation with that general manager marked the start of his involvement in Grand Valley's student-run radio station, as well as a decades-long career in broadcasting for teams like the Detroit Tigers and Detroit Red Wings.

"And I've carried that with me in the 100 years since I was at Grand Valley, because it was a gesture of kindness."

Following Keating's remarks, Mantella and Jennifer Drake, provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs, led the conferring of degrees. Graduates then moved their tassels and were dismissed as members of the Fall Class of 2025.

Graduates and their supporters have the opportunity to purchase Commencement mementos as well as DVDs of the ceremony.