Spring 2024 Convocation ceremonies celebrated at RRU
On Friday, June 14, nearly 750 graduates will cross the stage at the Royal Roads University 54th Convocation ceremonies, held in the Dogwood Auditorium on campus. Graduates will be joined in their celebration by alumni, family members and honoured guests.
Four ceremonies will be held to confer degrees, certificates and diplomas in the Faculty of Management, Faculty of Social and Applied Sciences and College of Interdisciplinary Studies at Canada’s university for changemakers.
“It’s a day of great significance for our graduates, =,” says President and Vice-Chancellor Philip Steenkamp. “We know how hard they work to get here and it’s heartwarming to see a room filled with their supporters. Our graduates are leaving inspired to change the world as leaders of sustainability, climate action, entrepreneurship and social justice. They are innovators, educators, lifelong learners and changemakers.”
Celebrating student achievement
Edward Appiah-Brafoh will make Royal Roads University history as the first graduate of the Doctor of Business Administration program. Appiah-Brafoh, originally from Mamfe in the Eastern Region of Ghana, successfully defended his dissertation earlier in the year.
Jesse Challoner, a graduate of the Master of Business Administration in Executive Management program, will be awarded the Governor General’s Gold Medal for academic excellence in graduate studies. A professional firefighter and advanced care paramedic, Challoner leaned into his experience with his Organizational Management Project called, Equity Diversity and Inclusion in the Fire Service: Augmenting Recruitment Strategies to Improve EDI in the Victoria Fire Department.
There are also 11 graduates who will be honoured with the Chancellor’s Award, which recognizes the highest academic performance in each program. There are 19 graduates receiving the Royal Roads Founders’ Award, which is presented to those who have demonstrated exemplary qualities relevant to their learning community. Four graduates will receive the President’s Scholar Award, for graduating with distinction in the top 10 per cent of their graduating class.
Before joining convocation ceremonies on June 14, Indigenous graduates will gather on campus the day prior, to celebrate in a private ceremony with family, friends, Elders and Old Ones.
The new graduates will join the network of Royal Roads alumni worldwide, bringing their number to 34,942. See the complete list of award winners and watch any of the four ceremonies online.