Hudson County Community College to Hold 45th Annual Commencement Exercises at Red Bull Arena
May 25, 2022
HCCC celebrates 2020-22 graduates on May 26.
May 25, 2022, Jersey City, NJ – Hudson County Community College (HCCC) will honor the Graduating Classes of 2020, 2021, and 2022 at Commencement exercises on Thursday, May 26, 2022, beginning at 12 noon. The ceremony will be held at Red Bull Arena, 600 Cape May Street, in Harrison, New Jersey.
“At this, our first on-ground commencement ceremony since the beginning of the pandemic, we will proudly and properly celebrate the nearly 2,300 graduates of the Classes of 2020 and 2021, and the more than 1,400 graduates of the Class of 2022,” said HCCC President Dr. Christopher Reber. “The entire HCCC Family is delighted to come together in celebration of our students’ milestone accomplishments, and their families and loved ones who have supported them every step of the way.”
In a break with tradition, yet one that is perfectly in-line with HCCC as a student-centered institution, HCCC 2021 Valedictorian, Pedro Moranchel, will deliver the keynote address. Mr. Moranchel, now a Princeton student, received the esteemed 2021 Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship that covers tuition, living expenses, books and required fees for high-achieving community college students who transfer to often prestigious universities to complete baccalaureate and graduate studies. Pedro was one of only 16 community college students nationwide admitted to Princeton last year.
Pedro Moranchel, HCCC Class of 2021 Valedictorian, now a Princeton University junior and the HCCC 2022 Commencement keynote speaker, is pictured here with his parents.
Pedro Moranchel is the son of Mexican and Honduran immigrants, whose struggles motivated him to set and achieve ambitious academic goals. While at HCCC, Mr. Moranchel served as Vice President of Scholarship for the College’s chapter of Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society, President of the HCCC STEM Club, and Director of the Inter-Club Council of the HCCC Student Government Association. He participated in the Summer Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program at Queensborough Community College, which was funded by the National Science Foundation, and a prestigious 10-week internship at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory.
Habiba Desouky, Class of 2022 Valedictorian and Bayonne resident, who will receive her Associate in Science in Medical Sciences Pre-Professional degree, will deliver the Valedictory address.
Reverend Dr. Dorothy Patterson, Pastor of Wallace Temple AME Zion Church in Bayonne, will offer the invocation. The first woman pastor of the Wallace Temple AME Zion Church, Dr. Patterson is an educator, advocate, and prominent community leader.
Hudson County Executive Thomas A. DeGise will present the 2022 Heritage Award to Dr. Joseph Sirangelo. Dr. Sirangelo is the Director of Planning, Research and Evaluation at the Hudson County Schools of Technology (HCST), where he has utilized his 41 years of experience in urban public schools to help the HCST District achieve success and recognition. HCCC and HCST have always worked closely together, and 14 HCST High Tech High School students enrolled in the College’s dual-enrollment Early College program will receive their high school diplomas and graduate HCCC this year. The College also offers classes on the HCST Frank J. Gargiulo Campus in Secaucus.
The HCCC Heritage Award was instituted 33 years ago to honor community members who have made significant contributions to the College, its students, and families. Past recipients include: Hudson County Executive Thomas A. DeGise; President of Lindenfelser Associates, Aerospace Consultants and former Kearny Mayor and Councilperson Kenneth H. Lindenfelser; SILVERMAN principal Paul Silverman; former HCCC Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Abegail Douglas-Johnson; Union City science teacher Nadia Makar; Pastor and Overseer of Mt. Sinai Full Baptist Church Mother Jacqueline Mays; United Way of Hudson County President Daniel Altilio; Hudson County business leader Raju Patel; retired Jersey Journal publisher Scott Ring; former New Jersey City University President Dr. Carlos Hernandez; Director of District Redesign and Leadership at the Annenberg Institute for School Reform/Brown University Marla Ucelli; retired HCCC Vice President for Development and Assistant to the President Joseph D. Sansone; and Executive Director of WomenRising, Sr. Roseann Mazzeo, S.C.
The National Anthem will be sung by Marliza Mabutas, a member of the HCCC Early College program, who will receive her HCCC degree on Thursday, and her diploma from Jersey City’s Dickinson High School in June. She is one of 38 Hudson County high school students who have completed the HCCC associate degree this year while enrolled in high school.
Additional information about the HCCC Class of 2022 and the College’s Commencement ceremonies will be forthcoming.