Nearly 600 students to graduate at Catholic colleges in archdiocese

Criterion staff report

Students, families and educators will join in the celebration as the three Catholic colleges in the archdiocese hold their graduation ceremonies in May.

Marian College

With 386 graduates, Marian College will have the largest graduating class in its history when it holds its 70th annual commencement at 10 a.m. on May 5.

The commencement address will be given by Kevin Koers, principal of Franklin Central High School in Indianapolis and the 2006 Indiana Principal of the Year.

A 1976 graduate of Marian and a former teacher and coach at Bishop Chatard High School in Indianapolis, Koers will be among three people receiving honorary degrees from Marian College. The father of four will receive an honorary Doctor of Public Service degree.

Senior class president Joseph S. Newton will also speak at the commencement.

Marian will also present honorary degrees to Jeanne (Wieck) Atkins and Michael Browning.

Atkins is the president and founder of Atkins International Foods, which was recognized in 2006 as the Indiana family-owned business of the year by the U.S. Small Business Administration. Atkins started the business in 1980, selling cheesecakes from the family’s home in Carmel, Ind.

She is a member of the Order of Secular Franciscans and a former board member of the Catholic Community Foundation, the Little Sisters of the Poor and Our Lady of Fatima Retreat House in Indianapolis.

Atkins will receive an honorary Doctor of Business Administration degree for her life and career of “prayer, perseverance and perspiration.”

Browning will receive the honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree for his “extraordinary contributions to the economic, cultural and entertainment landscape of central Indiana.”

A 1968 graduate of the University of Notre Dame, Browning is the chairman of the board and president of Browning Investments Inc. in Indianapolis.

He serves as the chairman of the athletics initiative of the “Make History” campaign at Marian. He is also a member of the board of directors and the executive committee of the Indiana Sports Corporation. He also led the negotiations which resulted in the relocation of the National Collegiate Athletic Association headquarters to Indianapolis.

Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College

Affectionately known as “Sister Tricia” to the thousands of children she has served, Charity Sister Patricia A. Cruise will be the main speaker at commencement for Saint Mary-of-the Woods College on May 5.

The commencement for the 149 members of the graduating class will begin at 2 p.m. in the Cecilian Auditorium of the college’s Conservatory of Music.

As the president of Covenant House since 2003, Sister Patricia leads the international organization—with 21 sites in six countries—that is dedicated to serving “suffering children of the street with absolute respect and unconditional love.” She will receive an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree.

The college will also honor Providence Sister Marie Kevin Tighe with an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree. She served as the vice postulator and promoter of Mother Theodore Guérin’s cause for sainthood.

Saint Meinrad School of Theology

Forty-eight students are expected to receive master’s degrees when Saint Meinrad holds its commencement at 2 p.m on May 12.

The ceremony will take place in the archabbey’s St. Bede Theater, where graduates will receive degrees that include Master of Divinity, Master of Theological Studies and Master of Arts in Catholic Thought and Life.

The commencement address will be given by Bishop Frederick Campbell of the Diocese of Columbus, Ohio. †