Orange Coast College confers more than 3,800 degrees at 74th commencement ceremony

Orange Coast College handed out more than 3,800 associate degrees Friday night at the Pacific Amphitheatre at the OC Fair & Event Center.

It was the first in-person graduation the community college has held in the more than two years since the pandemic took hold but the 74th overall commencement ceremony since the campus opened in 1948. The ceremony was also livestreamed online.

Emotions ran high as graduates celebrated in their navy caps and gowns. Student body president Sierra Wisner paused to take a selfie with the graduating class along with college president Angelica Suarez.

Graduate Kimberly Ly makes a walking selfie video with her grandmother as she arrives to Orange Coast College’s 74th commencement ceremony.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

“Receiving my associate’s degree was a major event. Not just for me, but for my entire family,” Suarez told the crowd. “It was a milestone that put me on the path that brought me here today and let me tell you, your journey never really ends. You may be ending your time here at OCC, but you will continue learning for the rest of your life. You may be in your career or your next educational step. It’s not just you.

“It is those around you who will learn and grow as well. It will always be in ways that you never imagined ... please believe me when I say you will always have a special place at Orange Coast College and you will always be a Pirate.”

This year’s student commencement speech was delivered by communications major Oree Freeman, a single mother who was a victim of sex trafficking. Freeman thanked the Guardian Scholar program, the CARE program and the Extended Opportunity Programs and Services at the college, describing them as a community and crediting them with changing her life.

“It’s not about how we start. It’s about how we finish,” said Freeman in her remarks. “It’s not a race. It’s a marathon, so embrace your journey. Life is hard sometimes and throughout your journey, you might fail. But each day, you have a choice to get back up. Get back up, and don’t you dare give up.”

Graduates Katie McCarrol and Claudia Aruzie, from left, arrive for the Orange Coast College’s 74th commencement ceremony at the Pacific Amphitheatre on Friday.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

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