Celebrating the Class of 2025

Three graduates in caps and gowns smile and pose for a photo at a nighttime graduation ceremony in a crowded stadium
University ceremony at night with a speaker in red academic robes at a podium, fireworks on a screen, and an audience in the background. Festive atmosphere.
Graduates celebrating in caps and gowns in a crowded arena. One person is joyfully raising fists and holding a water bottle, surrounded by cheering classmates.
A group of smiling students in military uniforms and ceremonial stoles pose for a photo at a large, crowded graduation ceremony, conveying excitement.
A commencement speaker stands at a podium on a brightly lit stage, addressing a large audience under the night sky. Graduates and faculty are seated, with a big screen displaying visuals behind the speaker. The atmosphere is celebratory and formal.
Graduates in caps and gowns stand solemnly with hands on hearts during a ceremony at dusk. A large screen displays fireworks, creating a celebratory mood.
A graduate in a blue gown and cap smiles at the camera while making a hand gesture. The background is a blurred stadium audience, conveying joy and achievement.
Graduation cap decorated with a glittery surface, featuring a wildcat face and the words "BEAR DOWN" in red, "2025" below. Celebratory atmosphere.
A smiling woman in ceremonial robes holds a staff on a lit stage at dusk, with a large blurred screen and audience in the background. Celebratory atmosphere.
Two graduates in caps and gowns smile and pose for a photo inside a stadium, with a large University of Arizona logo in the background.
Graduates in caps and gowns celebrate enthusiastically among professors in academic regalia. The scene is lively, joyful, and full of energy.
Graduates in caps and gowns cheer and capture fireworks on phones at a nighttime ceremony. The scene is lively and celebratory, with a large screen in the background.


A record-setting number of family, friends and supporters filled Arizona Stadium on May 16 to celebrate the University of Arizona's 161st Commencement, where President Suresh V. Garimella conferred about 9,000 bachelor's, master's, doctoral and professional degrees.

More than 39,000 guests attended Friday's ceremony, packing Arizona Stadium up to the nosebleeds. 

Garimella, presiding over his first Commencement since assuming the presidency in October, said the occasion represented a set of promises from the U of A to both the graduates and the world at large.

"No matter what the stage for you will be, whether it's graduate school, a career or other paths, your alma mater is here to support you and root for your success," Garimella said. "And you, our graduates, are part of the promise we've made to our communities. Whatever you go on to do, you carry the university's promise to be a force for good."

Commencement speaker Erik Weihenmayer, a world-renowned adventurer known for becoming the first blind person to summit Mount Everest and the only blind climber to ascend the highest peaks on each continent, related his own personal experiences to the challenges that graduates will face in the coming years.

Weihenmayer said he sees the world as populated by climbers, campers and quitters. 

"Climbers are a rare group, and if I could see, I'd be looking at a lot of climbers out here," Weihenmayer told the crowd. "These are people who continue to figure out a way to grow and evolve and explore and challenge themselves every day of their lives until the day they die."

The event also included remarks by Regent Fred DuVal of the Arizona Board of Regents, interim Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost Ron Marx, college deans, Associated Students of the University of Arizona President Adriana Grijalva, Graduate and Professional Student Council President Jeremy Bernick and others. 

Jessica Retis, director and professor in the School of Journalism, gave the ceremony's greeting in Spanish. Tori Johnson, a 2025 graduate from the Eller College of Management and member of the Tohono O'odham Nation, delivered the university's land acknowledgement.

 

May 19, 2025