Montclair State University will award degrees to 2,986 graduates at its Commencement ceremonies at Continental Airlines Arena on Friday, May 20, at 10:30 a.m. This is the largest class in the University's 97-year history.

At a ceremony expected to attract 12,000 people, degrees to be awarded will include 2,228 bachelor's degrees, 756 master's degrees and two doctoral degrees. Total degrees awarded by the University have grown by more than 25 percent since 2000 as the University continues to become broadly recognized as one of the preeminent centers for learning and teaching excellence in the region.

An honorary Doctor of Laws degree will be awarded to Murray L. Cole, who was a member of MSU's Board of Trustees for 23 years and led the Board as chair for 10 years, from 1983 to 1989 and from 1995 to 1999. In addition, Cole, a Ridgewood resident, was an active participant in numerous University events as well as a generous contributor of financial assistance as well as property and other equipment such as books, instructional videotapes and solar equipment. He was instrumental in encouraging others to become friends and supporters of the University, and served on the steering council of the University's first capital campaign.

A distinguished lawyer prior to his 1997 retirement, the Paterson native is a graduate of Williams College and Cornell University Law School. A past president of the Passaic County Bar Association, his many honors include the New Jersey State Bar Foundation's prestigious Medal of Honor. Click here to read more about Cole.

Receiving an honorary Doctor of Science degree at the College of Science and Mathematics Convocation on May 16 at 7 p.m. will be Dr. Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, president and CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the first woman and African-American to head that prestigious healthcare philanthropy. A graduate of Harvard Medical School and the Wharton School, she has served in a variety of roles at the University of Pennsylvania, in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and as a frequent consultant to the White House. Click here to read more about Lavizzo-Mourey.

For the second consecutive year, the University will hold on-campus Convocations for all its schools and colleges prior to the main Commencement ceremony. At the Convocations, the names of all degree recipients will be announced, providing each student the opportunity to walk across the stage and be recognized.