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ÂÜÀòÉç Confers 254 Degrees at 2014 Winter Commencement

Graduating students were encouraged to reach beyond their future professions to find the essence of the image of God in every person they meet.

Graduates called to find God in their neighbors

CHICAGO (December 15, 2014) — A festive crowd gathered on Friday night in the North Park gymnasium to celebrate the achievements of students from across the University.

Students were led into the gymnasium by a procession of flags of the countries and territories in which graduates were born, are citizens, or have been residents. The flags of the United States, the city of Chicago, and ÂÜÀòÉç led the procession, followed by the flags of Ecuador, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Norway, Poland, Romania, South Korea, Sweden, and Ukraine.

Serving as the culmination of the fall semester, ÂÜÀòÉç awarded bachelor’s degrees to 182 students, including graduates from the . Seventy-two graduate degrees were awarded to 68 students from across the , , , and .

In his commencement address to graduates and their friends and family, University President Dr. David L. Parkyn told the story of . A North Park alum, Carlson was featured on the cover of and magazines 50 years ago this month after he was tragically killed while providing medical care in the Congo.

“What Paul Carlson discovered during his two years at North Park was a commitment to find God in his neighbors,” Parkyn said. “He was not a saint; he didn’t set out to be martyred and become a hero with his portrait in the national press. He simply set out to find and serve God in every person he met.”

Parkyn urged graduates that although they are not expected to meet the same fate as Dr. Carlson, the example he provided is what the University means in its mission of preparing students for lives of significance and service. “Become a teacher or a nurse, a social worker or psychologist, a research scientist or a community organizer, an artist or a programmer, a musician or a preacher, an entrepreneur or a business leader. Develop a command of digital design, market messaging, financial portfolios, political structures, or information systems. Make any one of these your professional goal,” Parkyn said. “Yet don’t stop with this. Reach beyond these good and honored professions and be a person, like Paul Carlson, who sets out to find the essence of the image of God in every person you meet.”

Katherine Patterson, biology major, was awarded the Ahnfeldt Medallion for the highest undergraduate GPA in the graduating class.
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In addition to awarding degrees, the University also presented the Ahnfeldt Medallion, given to the undergraduate with the highest GPA, to , a biology major who graduated a semester early. In addition to her studies, Peterson was also active in North Park’s and served as a peer-writing mentor on campus. Patterson also spent multiple summers at the and volunteered at Chicago’s .

“Katherine’s love for nature stems from her love for God and the things God created,” said Bruce Bickner, chairman of the Board of Trustees, who presented the award. “Her sense of wonder and awe leads her to a mission field of woods and streams.”

The commencement program also included a reading from Proverbs, choral performances by the , a graduation litany, and a presentation of degrees by University deans.

The commencement ceremony also featured a benediction from , read by graduates in seven languages, including Arabic, Hindi, Tagolog, Swedish, Korean, Vietnamese, and Norwegian.

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