‘‘If I didn’t go back to school, I’m not sure what my future would have been like,” Church said. ‘‘Probably a lot more needles and stuff.”
A little more than an hour after addressing his fellow graduates, Church found out he was accepted to Cornell University, where he wants to study accounting and eventually become a management analyst.
Church was one of four student award-winners who addressed the graduating class. In addition to Church, other Board of Trustees Scholars included Swee Lin Teo of Germantown, representing the Germantown campus, and Jennifer L. Frank of Takoma Park, representing the Takoma Park⁄Silver Spring campus. Joshua Parrish Lindauere of Cockeysville, from the Workforce Development and Continuing Education program, received the Apprenticeship Scholar award.
Church and the other student speakers credited the positive learning environment and faculty support for their academic success.
‘‘I am what you see today, not just because I worked hard to change and succeed, but because so many at MC gave me the opportunity to change and worked hard to help me succeed,” he said in his speech.
Four community members received honorary degrees, including former U.S. Rep. and Ambassador Constance A. Morella, who gave the commencement address. J.W. Marriott Jr., CEO of Marriott International Inc., his brother Richard E. Marriott, chairman of Host Hotels and Resorts, and Teresa Rios Wright, a teacher and Hispanic community leader, also received honorary degrees.
Morella, a former Montgomery College English professor, represented Maryland’s 8th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1987 to 2003 and served as ambassador to the Organization for Economic Development from 2003 to 2007. She raised nine children, including six of her late sister’s children.
Morella encouraged the graduates to participate in this year’s ‘‘historic presidential election” and stay involved with the community because, in the end, that’s where the difference is made, she said.
‘‘Learning locally, transforming globally. That’s what’s happening right now,” she said. ‘‘I’ve received honorary degrees before, but this one is particularly special because of my involvement here.”
Morella said the diversity of the college is to be celebrated and that the students were graduating from the best community college in the country.
J.W. Marriott accepted the degree for his brother, who was receiving another award in Chicago, but said his family has a special appreciation of community colleges.
‘‘My father went to a community college in Utah, which gave him the courage to go to the University of Utah, which gave him the courage to move to the D.C. area and open a little root beer stand,” Marriott said. That root beer stand later grew into the Marriott hotel chain.
More than 2,200 students completed the requirements for associate’s degrees, apprenticeships or certificate programs during the past year, according to the college, and more than 750 attended the graduation ceremony last week.
