Since its founding in 1836, Emory University has evolved from a small Methodist college in Oxford, Ga., to a nationally recognized R1 research institution and university in Atlanta. Through each dramatic change across the decades, one ritual has remained constant: Commencement.
For generations of students, commencement is often a point of reflection — a time to look back on the personal growth and historical changes they experienced during their college years. From desegregation to protests, a Coca-Cola gift, and His Holiness the XIVth and Emory Presidential Distinguished Professor, the Dalai Lama's visits, commencement reveals Emory’s evolving history.
1970s: The Woodruff Donation
Kevin Kell (75Ox, 77C), a political science major, still remembers a pre-Woodruff donation Emory in the 1970s, with its “quiet” culture.
“[Emory] was known in certain circles in the South, primarily as a desirable destination,” Kell said. “President Laney once described it as monastic, which was a good way to describe it. It was very, very quiet, very turned in on itself.”
Emory’s environment changed dramatically in 1979 with Robert Woodruff (1912C), long-time president of The Coca-Cola Company and his brother, George Woodruff’s $105 million Coca-Cola stock donation to Emory — the largest single donation ever made to an educational institution at the time.
Kell emphasized that the Emory experience differed dramatically before and after receiving the donation.
“There’s been two Emorys,” Kell said. “There’s the Emory before the Woodruff gift in 1979, … and then there’s the Emory of today. You almost can’t talk about the two without them being mutually exclusive.”
Robert Strickland, chairman of the Board of Trustees at the time, spoke about how the Woodruff gift would elevate Emory’s financial standing and expand its academic reach.
“This gift…will enable Emory University to go into the eighties with new plans and new programs that will allow the university to assume higher levels of attainment in leadership in education than ever before,” Strickland said.
1980s: A Presidential Partnership
The 1980s marked a turning point in Emory’s visibility through its connections to former U.S. President Jimmy Carter.
Former University President James Laney’s partnership with Carter elevated Emory’s public image. Carter joined the University in 1982 and hosted major global events on campus, symbolizing Emory’s expanding reach.
Patton White (83C) emphasized the close-knit relationship students had with Laney and his wife during his time at Emory.
“They had a very close relationship with the student body,” White said. “I don’t know if that sort of relationship exists at this point between our current president and the student body.”
At the first-ever Carter Town Hall, the former president spoke about the impact that his relationship with Emory would have on the school.
“To be frank with you, the status of Emory will be drastically changed by my presence,” Carter said.
Jimmy Carter Professor of History Joseph Crespino emphasized the connection between Carter’s affiliation with the University and its rising prestige.
“I don’t think that’s just incidental,” Crespino said. “President Carter’s association with the University has been a tremendous benefit to the University and helped raise Emory’s profile around the world.”
White said Emory’s campus culture helped shape his personal and professional life after Emory.
“The friendships and connections that I made while at Emory remain the closest friendships that I have,” White said. “Those lifelong bonds were forged in that space of transition from childhood to adulthood, and for me, at least, those bonds remain super important.”
The 1980s brought more significant developments to Emory’s campus, with the Cannon Chapel erected in 1981. The building of the Cannon Chapel emphasized interfaith dialogue at Emory, reflecting the University’s Methodist roots while embracing its theological mission.
The school also welcomed its first cohort of Robert W. Woodruff scholars, an elite group of students recognized for their academic excellence, leadership, creativity and service.
1990s: Emory Diversifies its Education
Emory continued to shine on the global stage in 1990 with Mikhail Gorbachev, former leader of the Soviet Union, delivering Emory’s Commencement address in 1992, just months after the USSR’s collapse.
In 1995, the University hosted U.S. President Bill Clinton, whose visit sparked conversations on business and economics within higher education.
Three years later, in 1998, the Dalai Lama delivered that year’s Commencement address. In his speech, the Dalai Lama praised the University’s unique education, which he said could not be attained elsewhere.
“It [life] is bound to face some hindrances or obstacles or complications,” the Dalai Lama said. “So it’s very, very important to have the dedication and optimism and patience.”
Josh Resnick (95C), who majored in philosophy and minored in economics, recalled how his time at Emory helped shape his understanding of people.
“In life, one of the most important things you can have is your ability to relate to other people,” Resnick said. “The more time you spend around people who aren’t like you, the easier it is for you to navigate your way through life.”
Reflecting on Emory today, Resnick pointed to the University’s diverse academic landscape as a shift from his time as a student.
“When I was at Emory, there was a lot of emphasis on the sciences, and so most people were either bio majors or chem majors, or were in the business school,” Resnick said. “If you can believe it, when I was an economics major in some of my classes, there were seven kids, seven students in my classes, in my senior year, who were econ majors.”
Meanwhile, Emory’s campus infrastructure and academic scope continued its expansion, with the Goizueta Business School’s new building opening in 1997.
2000s: Emory on the Global Stage
The early 2000s shaped Emory with a resurgence of student activism and a growing sense of institutional accountability post-9/11. In 2003, Emory students launched the Living Wage Campaign, which demanded fair and dignified compensation for Emory employees.
Former President of Ireland Mary Robinson delivered the keynote address at Emory’s commencement ceremony in 2004.
Robinson highlighted the fear permeating Emory’s campus and the United States after the 9/11 attacks.
“The terrible attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 here in the United States and their aftermath have left people in this country and around the world feeling less secure, less able to say with conviction that the world is becoming more peaceful, less confident that the future will be better than the past,” Robinson said.
Students also grappled with the impacts of 9/11, with Sarah Dingivan (05C, 09L) emphasizing the changing atmosphere at Emory.
“I got to college, then two and a half weeks later, the whole tempo of the country changed,” Dingivan said. “I grew up quickly. That day forced me to think more critically about things.”
As Emory students like Amrit Dhir (06C) looked back on their final days, he found himself caught between nostalgia and anticipation.
“We were very aware that this was the end of a very important era in our lives,” Dhir said. “I remember I went back to Complex, I went back to my ground floor room, and I remember just, I have a photo from that evening, being in the freshman dorm and just remembering my experience.”
Dhir also emphasized the globalization Emory has experienced since his time here, with the increase of international students on campus.
“I’ve seen a lot more foreign nationals being undergrads at Emory,” Dhir said. “It’s such an incredible development and such an opportunity for both those students and American students.”
The University opened the Schwartz Center for Performing Arts in 2003, creating a new artistic hub for students on campus.
For Hiral Lavinia (02C), commencement meant celebrating the community she had built with her friends during college.
“I remember more of the quality time I had with my friends, hanging out with them,” Lavinia said. “That’s where I met my future husband.”
The University also named the Dalai Lama a Presidential Distinguished Professor in 2007, the first such appointment in Emory’s history. This appointment came after the University created the Emory-Tibet Science Initiative, the first and only Western university to have an official academic partnership with the Dalai Lama.
2010s: The Making of Modern Emory
Emory’s growth in the public health field was marked in this era by the opening of the Claudia Nance Rollins Building in 2010 and a $65 million gift from the O. Wayne Rollins Foundation in 2019.
The University also made national headlines when it partnered with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 2014 to treat patients with the Ebola virus. Emory students and faculty have worked alongside CDC experts on joint research initiatives, student training programs and real-time responses to public health crises.
Paris Scott (09C) felt her experience at Emory reflected a healthy balance of academic and social growth.
“I really felt like I had a good work-life balance,” Scott said. “I was able to make a lot of really meaningful friendships, meaningful relationships, but also get an amazing, incredible collegiate education.”
Scott mentioned how the few months before Commencement were a time when she found herself reflecting on her college experience and what lay ahead.
“As this time is winding down, thinking about what I’m going to take from what I’ve learned, and how am I going to apply that to the next life stage,” Scott said.
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger spoke at Emory’s commencement ceremony in 2010, emphasizing the importance of staying true to oneself in the face of doubt from others.
“You’re going to find the nay-sayers in every turn that you make,” Schwarzenegger said. “Don’t listen. Just visualize your goal, know exactly where you want to go, trust yourself, get out there and work like hell, and break some of the rules, and never ever be afraid of failure.”
On campus, the University completed renovations on the new Emory Student Center, including a dining hall and other study and collaborative spaces.
2025:
As the Class of 2025 prepares to walk across the stage this spring, they do so after experiencing a global pandemic, a shifting political landscape and historic student activism that defined their college experience.
The Class of 2025 will be the last class to be on campus at Emory who dealt with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Last year, after police shut down a pro-Palestine encampment, many students felt their trust in the University decline. The University relocated Commencement to the Gas South District in Duluth, Ga., because of safety and security concerns.
Shreya Ramanathan (25C) said the uncertainty of the past four years and the current political turmoil have only deepened her belief in the importance of pursuing her personal passions.
“It’s a super scary time right now for our country,” Ramanathan said. “But the most important thing is to take a moment to just ground yourself and pursue what you’re passionate about. In a world where it’s so uncertain, the most you can do is just be true to yourself.”
Roja Ayyadurai (25C) said she believes Emory’s connection to the greater Atlanta community offered a unique avenue for growth during these uncertain times.
“Emory very much encourages their students to go out and seek these experiences in such a unique area and connect with the Atlanta community,” Ayyadurai said. “I feel like that’s something that makes Emory what it is.”
For Camilla Brown (25C), she said the support system she found on campus was key in helping her move forward through life.
“Even when it felt hard to go to class, I still could reach out and feel loved from those in spiritual and religious life, those in the SILT office, those in recreation and wellness, and even in my philosophy classes, professors were so supporting,” Brown said. “The support systems at Emory, just those people, they helped get me through it.”
As Emory’s seniors line up on the University Quadrangle for Commencement like those before them, their experiences echo across generations. Commencement at Emory is not just a ceremony, but a reflection of Emory’s history and all the alumni who have come before them.
