On Sunday, December 13, Concordia University Ann Arbor celebrated the undergraduate and graduate degrees of 235 graduation candidates in a Virtual Commencement. The ceremony recognized any student who completed programs in May or December of this year. The ceremony was highlighted with a keynote address from Tim Tebow.
The two-time national champion, Heisman Trophy winner, professional baseball player, and current ESPN analyst Tim Tebow delivered an inspiring and heartfelt commencement address. His pre-recorded message was uplifting and incorporated Concordia's motto to "Live Uncommon."
Tebow's emphatic message encouraged graduates to be passionate, sacrificial, successful and significant. Tebow touched on Ephesians 2: 8-10 that states "It is by grace you have been saved through faith and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast. He reminded graduates that just made the ultimate sacrifice on the cross so that we can have eternal life. Tebow went on to expand on verse 10 that we are his "workmanship" or "masterpiece". We are created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God has prepared in advance for us to do. He concluded by stating that when we are serving Jesus we win and that living uncommon won't always be easy but will be worth it.
Over half of the total graduates have represented the athletic department as either a player or a coach. Several student-athletes were also recipients of the academic excellence awards from their respective fields of study.
May 2020
Eric Bugg (Football / Track and Field) – Athletic Training
Whitney Irmeger (Competitive Cheer) – Sport and Entertainment Business
Sarah Meili (Bowling) – Business
Nadia Rozmarniewicz (Volleyball) – Elementary Education
December 2020
Ryan Curtis (Tennis) – Theology (Parish Ministry)
To pay tribute to its May and December 2020 graduates, Concordia created a digital commencement portal that will house the video for the Virtual Commencement ceremony, commemorative pieces including graduates' names, a digital commencement celebration kit, and personalized videos for each and every graduates from a faculty and staff member.
The commencement portal is available at cuaa.edu/graduation. Take a moment to browse through the resources and opportunities that exist to celebrate you or your loved one's milestone achievement. Please join us in congratulating our graduates and student-athletes for all their accomplishments. They all impacted Concordia in signficant ways and their contributions on and off the playing field are appreciated.
