Graduate students participate in hooding ceremonies

Riverside, Calif. (Dec. 14, 2021) – Hundreds of master's degree candidates at California Baptist University are celebrating their academic achievements at hooding ceremonies, leading up to commencement ceremonies Dec. 15-16.

More than 275 master’s degree candidates and 15 doctoral candidates are eligible to participate in the fall commencements. At CBU, colleges and schools hold individual hooding ceremonies to recognize their candidates and also give students their distinctive colored hoods to wear at their commencement ceremony.

The Dr. Robert K. Jabs School of Business has the largest group of master’s candidates with 44. The Dr. Bonnie G. Metcalf School of Education has the second largest group with 37 candidates. Additionally, the Online and Professional Studies division has more than 140 candidates throughout its various programs.

At the School of Business hooding ceremony, held Dec. 13 at CBU, Dr. Tim Gramling, dean of the school, told the graduates that, equipped with their degree, their work is just beginning.

“Change is needed. There is a need for biblical principles; there is a need for alternative ways of doing business which honor and don't displease the Creator,” Gramling said. “The result: All of you play a role in every area where you will go into the world.”

Gramling also reminded them that God will work through them.

“It's not required for you to work miracles, it's just required of you to believe in the miracle worker,” Gramling said. “As you apply your belief and you bring that energy to your area, you will find that energy infectious and people will believe because they see the belief in you. And as a result, great things will be accomplished.”

Rachel Prudil, who earned a Master of Science in Information Technology Management, said the biggest challenge was doing most of the program through remote instruction due to the pandemic and then making the transition to in-person this fall.

“My biggest success I think was getting through it with my cohort. I think that was really great—building relationships and communicating and having that family,” Prudil said.

She said the program made her more open minded.

“I met so many different people. Where I grew up, it's more like a bubble and coming here, there's so many people coming from everywhere, so that's really nice,” Prudil said.

Fernando Quiroz-Raya, who earned a Master of Science in Information Technology Management, said his biggest challenge was balancing school and family. He will work as an IT director for a police department.

“CBU helped me put a spiritual vision on what I was studying,” Quiroz-Raya said. “Before, I was finding it a struggle, how can I use technology in a spiritual way? My professors helped me visualize that, blending technology with Christ, with my colleagues.”