Peter J. Schraeder, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) at Loyola University Chicago, has announced that three prominent CAS alumni will deliver the commencement addresses during this spring’s ceremonies. The featured group includes Mary Jane Theis, JD (BA '71), Toussaint Kafarhire Murhula, S.J., (PhD '16, MA '10) and Matthew Kolinski, MD (BS '06). 

 “It is an honor to welcome three distinguished alumni members back to campus to serve as our keynote speakers for the College of Arts and Sciences 153rd annual Commencement,” said Dean Schraeder. “All three individuals embody the mission and spirit of CAS, while each have also established themselves as leaders in their respective fields. We are grateful for their willingness to give back to the College with their time and insights, and we are looking forward to hearing their inspiring messages for our graduates.”  

For the second consecutive year, CAS will hold three Commencement ceremonies on at Gentile Arena. Chief Justice Theis will be the keynote speaker at the 9 a.m. CT ceremony, while Fr. Kafarhire will address graduates at the 1 p.m. CT ceremony and Dr. Kolinski will speak at the 5 p.m. CT celebration.  

 An overview of departments and interdisciplinary programs with their corresponding CAS Commencement ceremony can be found here. Please contact commencement@LUC.edu with questions. 

 Each ceremony will be streamed live and more information regarding Commencement can be found on the LUC Commencement homepage. 

Mary Jane Theis, JD (BA '71) 
Chief Justice, Illinois Supreme Court 
 
FULL BIOGRAPHY

Toussaint Kafarhire Murhula, S.J., (PhD '16, MA '10) 
Director, Arrupe Center for Research and Training; President, African Studies Association of Africa 
 
FULL BIOGRAPHY

Matthew Kolinski, MD (BS '06) 
Doctor of Medicine, Osteopathic Medicine; Chief Executive Officer, Staffing Management Group; Founder/CEO, USA Staffing Services 
 
FULL BIOGRAPHY 

About the College of Arts and Sciences

The College of Arts and Sciences is the oldest of Loyola University Chicago’s 15 schools, colleges, and institutes. More than 150 years since its founding, the College is home to 20 academic departments and 37 interdisciplinary programs and centers, more than 450 full-time faculty, and nearly 8,000 students. The 2,000+ classes that we offer each semester span an array of intellectual pursuits, ranging from the natural sciences and computational sciences to the humanities, the social sciences, and the fine and performing arts. Our students and faculty are engaged internationally at our campus in Rome, Italy, as well as at dozens of University-sponsored study abroad and research sites around the world. Home to the departments that anchor the University’s Core Curriculum, the College seeks to prepare all of Loyola’s students to think critically, to engage the world of the 21st century at ever deepening levels, and to become caring and compassionate individuals. Our faculty, staff, and students view service to others not just as one option among many, but as a constitutive dimension of their very being. In the truest sense of the Jesuit ideal, our graduates strive to be “individuals for others.”