Thiel College celebrated its' 138th Commencement exercises on Sunday, May 6, 2012 at 2 p.m.

Watch the Commencement | View the Program

Dr. Joyce Cuff will serve as the keynote speaker.

Notes for Seniors

Please check with the Records Office to make sure your academics are in order and with the Financial Services Office to clear any outstanding balances on your account. If you have any questions, contact the Records Office at ext. 2009 and the Financial Services Office at ext. 2810.

Commencement caps, gowns and hoods may be purchased at the Thiel Bookstore during regular store hours beginning on April 2. Not all sizes are guaranteed to be in stock after April 22. If you have any questions, call ext. 2170.

Commencement information, schedules and response cards were mailed to students and parents in mid-March. Please return your RSVP by April 20. Plan to attend mandatory Commencement rehearsal on Sunday, April 29 at 6 p.m. in Passavant. If you have a conflict with rehearsal, please contact the Office of Special Events at ext. 2240.

Additional Gala Luncheon tickets can be purchased by students or parents when returning response cards to the Office of Special Events. (Checks are payable to Thiel College.) After purchase, Gala Luncheon tickets can be picked up from the AVI office. Tickets are $14 for adults, $7 for children 6-12 and free for children 5 and under. Seating is limited and reservations are required.

Schedule of Events

Contact the Office of Special Events at ext. 2240 with any questions.

Commencement Keynote Speaker

Dr. Joyce Cuff
Professor of Biology and Paul M. Rike Professor of Life Sciences

Dr. Cuff's Commencement Address Transcript

Dr. Joyce Cuff, who is retiring from Thiel College after 30-plus years of teaching, has a plethora of accomplishments, honors and professional, academic and philanthropic activities to her credit, including assisting in the development of Thiel’s neuroscience program; co-authoring a book with Dr. Curt Thompson (“God and Nature: A Theologian and a Scientist Conversing on the Divine Promise of Possibility”); serving as adviser to Tri-Beta (national honorary society in biology); coordinating the Earth Day workshops for local school children; and serving on numerous college committees and as faculty chairperson and assistant academic dean—among many others. Additionally, Cuff frequently carried one of the largest teaching loads in terms of credit hours and served as the academic adviser for many of Thiel College’s life science students.
Known as a world traveler, Cuff spent her year-long sabbatical last year in northern Tanzania, working to establish a laboratory attached to a health clinic in the village of Karatu and serving the health needs of more than 10,000 new and continuing patients. The experience allowed her to apply 35 years of teaching and learning to issues of health care in Africa, while also providing her with experiences that helped to strengthen a variety of courses at Thiel. While there, she continued to serve Thiel students, specifically serving as a mentor for a student studying abroad in a neighboring village.

During years at Thiel, Cuff has received numerous fellowships, grants and honors, including Professor of the Year at Thiel in 1993, 2001 and 2012, a Fulbright Award and many others. She serves the large community as a member of the boards of UP—Unlimited Possibilities (a nonprofit committed to service locally and globally that she also co-founded), Shenango River Watchers and Mercer County Affordable Housing.

Cuff was appointed to the Thiel faculty in 1981, became an associate professor in 1985 and was promoted to full professor in 1991. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree at Regis College in Massachusetts and received her Ph.D. from the University of Rochester Medical School. A native of Manchester, N.H., Cuff plans to return to Tanzania and continue her work there after retirement.