ST. JOSEPH’S UNIVERSITY, NEW YORK SET TO CELEBRATE 106TH ANNUAL COMMENCEMENT CEREMONY

April 30, 2025

BROOKLYN and PATCHOGUE, N.Y. – April 30, 2025 – St. Joseph’s University, New York (SJNY) will celebrate its 106th annual commencement ceremony on Thursday, May 22 at noon at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, New York for more than 1,100 graduates. 

Founded by the Sisters of St. Joseph in 1916, the University is dedicating this year’s commencement to the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph (Brentwood) on the occasion of the 375th anniversary of the founding of the order of the Sisters of St. Joseph. The Sisters will receive the University Trustees Award during the program. 

“St. Joseph’s University, New York takes great pride in the heritage and rich traditions the Sisters of St. Joseph established and nurtured throughout the years,” said SJNY President Donald R. Boomgaarden, Ph.D. “The University is honored to be part of their enduring legacy — a legacy that has educated and served tirelessly with faith and devotion for an astounding 375 years and counting.”

The Sisters of St. Joseph were recognized as a religious congregation in Le Puy-en-Velay, France in 1650, during a time of social, religious, political and economic hardship. In 1836, six Sisters of St. Joseph arrived in St. Louis, Missouri and in the years that followed, the Sisters would spread throughout the United States, founding their first school in Williamsburg, Brooklyn in 1856, and later St. Joseph’s College for Women (now St. Joseph’s University, New York) in 1916. The Sisters of St. Joseph are empowered by God's love, rooted in the Gospel of Jesus, and faithful to the vision of one sacred Earth community, living and working to bring all into union with God and one another. Today, they continue their ministry through the empowerment of women and education, as well as spiritual education, and ecology efforts with a focus on sustainability and justice actions.

St. Joseph’s will also recognize Brooklyn Valedictorian Yashal Jalil ’25 and Long Island Valedictorian Caroline O’Dea ’25 during the program.

For more information about this year’s commencement, visit sjny.edu/2025.

ABOUT ST. JOSEPH'S UNIVERSITY, NEW YORK
St. Joseph’s University, New York has been dedicated to providing a diverse population of students in the New York metropolitan area with an affordable education rooted in the liberal arts tradition since 1916. Independent and coeducational, the University provides a strong academic and value-oriented education at the undergraduate and graduate levels, aiming to prepare each student for a life characterized by integrity, intellectual and spiritual values, social responsibility and service. Through its Brooklyn, Long Island and online campuses, the University offers degrees in more than 100 majors, special course offerings and certificates, affiliated and pre-professional programs.