Live blog: Senior Send-Off 2025!

co-written by

Tom Reed

co-written by

Theodore Decker

co-written by

Ginny Sharkey ’83

media by

Brooke LaValley

media by

James Schuller

Commencement

At 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 #########, seniors get the run of campus during their final days on The Hill. Follow along as we share their stories.

May 12, 2025

Aerial photo of the Class of 2025 forming a large "'25" on Reese~Shackelford Common

Free of their “final” final exams, the Class of 2025 has 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 ######### all to themselves for much of the week leading up to their Saturday Commencement.

It’s a time of cheers and tears, of closed chapters and new beginnings. Over the next few days, we’re chronicling their last few days as students on The Hill. Follow along as we update through the week!

Don't miss a moment of Senior Send-Off! Jump to:

View the Flickr Album

Tuesday, May 13

‘Making a statement on campus’

Three friends from this Class of 2025 challenged themselves to make each day at 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 ######### count.

Every so often — struck by the trio’s success at landing internships and other opportunities while at 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 ######### — someone will remark, “you guys are so lucky.”

At those times, Adonte Mays, Ryan Dawson, and Tef Tewoldeberhan all think the same thing:

Luck had very little to do with it.

This trio of seniors navigated their 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 ######### experience with intentionality, a like-minded commitment to take advantage of everything The Hill afforded them.

“We all were very eager to not only be successful, but to put ourselves out there,” said Mays, a computer science major and president of 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 #########’s Black Student Union. “That kind of made us come together as one, because we had a common goal to thrive.”

Mays and Dawson connected even before arriving at 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 #########, having met online as they prepared for first-year orientation.

They ran into Tewoldeberhan not long after that.

“We found Tef along the way on East Quad,” Mays said.

The three became fast friends, bonding over their plans to make the most of college. And in the award-winning Knowlton Center for Career Exploration, recently ranked #4 for career services by Princeton Review, they found a second home of sorts.

They discovered all that the Knowlton Center offers 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 ######### students, from career advice to leads on internships. They met and relied upon strong mentors who were older students and members of the faculty and staff.

They also got involved in various ways, working at the Knowlton Center, with Red Corps, and as community advisors. They jumped at every chance to network with their classmates and with alumni.

“Once you get the ball rolling, you meet so many people,” said Dawson, a computer science major.

“We didn’t want to waste our four years,” Mays said. “We wanted to make a statement on campus, we wanted to make a name for ourselves, and I think we all did in some way.”

Tewoldeberhan is an economics major and after graduation is headed to Chicago, where he landed a job with the financial consulting firm, Morningstar.

“The cool aspect about going to a liberal arts school is I’ve taken theater classes, dance classes, classes for film, random classes that opened up my mind” and introduced him to peers outside his major, he said.

Mays and Dawson are coming full circle as their time at 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 ######### draws to a close. They’re going to be roommates again, this time in downtown Columbus. Both were hired by JPMorgan Chase.

“These four years at 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 ######### can really change everything if you fully immerse yourself in the experience,” Dawson said.

“Coming to 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 #########, do not lock yourself into one friend group,” Mays said. “Everyone at 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 ######### is a resource. The Knowlton Center will definitely help you, but only to a certain point. You have to do the rest.”

“Knowlton is not going to fill up the bullet points” on your resume for you, said Tewoldeberhan, who said he often worked late into the night applying to internships, nudging Dawson and Mays with 3 a.m. texts asking, “why aren’t you still up?”

Mays and Dawson relate to their friend’s drive.

“To be successful, at 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 ######### and in the world, you have to want it, and be eager enough to do the work,” Mays said.

— THEODORE DECKER

Monday, May 12

‘You can be whatever you want to be at 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 #########’

Micah Stromsoe DeLorenzo spent three years as a tour guide. It never felt like a sales pitch, but a collection of personal stories about what made campus life special.

As she led her final tour, Micah Stromsoe DeLorenzo ’25 began backpedaling to face prospective students and their parents while addressing them on their walk across campus.

She’s enjoyed working as a docent for the 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 #########’s Office of Admission even as the job has bled into her social life.

“I find myself walking backwards in my day-to-day life now,” Stromsoe DeLorenzo said. “My friends call me out on it. If there’s a big group of us walking together, I’ll just go ahead and turn around so I can see everybody and they’re like, ‘Oh, my god, tour guide, stop it.’”

必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 ######### was never part of her grand plan. A California native who grew up in Columbus, Ohio, Stromsoe DeLorenzo wanted to attend college out of state. Her parents bargained with her — visit at least one Ohio university and then make your decision. She chose 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 ######### in part because her stepmother, Lane Vanderhule ’01, was an alum.

She instantly fell in love with the campus. Stromsoe DeLorenzo recalled how much she liked her tour and the salient points made by its charismatic docent, Sam Wyckoff ’23.

“Sam said something that really stuck with me,” she said. “He said that everyone at 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 ######### is ‘hyphenated’ because all the students do multiple things. They become multifaceted in their time at 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 #########.”

Stromsoe DeLorenzo is a psychology major who minored in studio art. She writes for The Bullsheet. She performs with the campus Chamber Singers. She co-hosts the “Venus Cymbal” show with her roommate, Abby Jump ’25, at WDUB.

For someone who wanted to spend time out of state, Stromsoe DeLorenzo committed 10 weeks to an on-campus Summer Scholars research project.

The former lead singer of the Columbus-based band, Forever Unknown, Stromsoe DeLorenzo continues to write and record music. She and Jump headlined the final “Bands at Bando” show of the school year at Bandersnatch Coffee House on April 25.

“I try to exemplify Sam’s ‘hyphenated student’ message when leading my tours,” Stromsoe DeLorenzo said. “I tell stories and show people that you can be whatever you want to be at 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 #########.”

Carianne Meng, senior associate director of admission, said docents often provide the first and most lasting impression of campus visits.

“Their stories, energy, and authenticity bring the 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 ######### experience to life,” she said.

Stromsoe DeLorenzo struck the perfect balance between supplying necessary information and entertaining visitors with tales of personal experience and humor, Meng said.

On her final tour, Stromsoe DeLorenzo described herself as a “proud maximalist” who cluttered her closets and shelves with too many clothes and items from home. She spoke of President Adam Weinberg’s caring nature, and how he frequently stops students to ask them how their 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 ######### experience is going.

Meng estimates Stromsoe DeLorenzo led about 100 tours over three years.

“It’s always nice to get an email from a prospective student who says, ‘I just put down a deposit,’’’ Stromsoe DeLorenzo said. “I’ve had five current students who sought me out and told me they were on my tour.”

Stromsoe DeLorenzo will spend the summer in Seattle doing research for an organization that works with kids on the autism spectrum — a subject she’s passionate about — before likely attending graduate school.

As a singer-songwriter, Stromsoe DeLorenzo says being a docent is another form of performance art. The campus has been her stage, and she’s loved showing it off to her audience.

“I’ve enjoyed representing 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 ######### and introducing students to our space,” she said. “I’ve wanted them to understand how friendly people are here, and how welcoming the environment is. I’ve told them, ‘You will find your people, you will be welcomed, you will be able to grow and get all the resources you need.’ I say that from personal experience.”

— TOM REED

Moments from the day

5:38 p.m. | Slivy's

Orientation leaders honored for their service

Noah Chartier ’25 summed up the experience of being an orientation leader as “one of the few jobs that never stops.” Throughout their first year, students often seek advice from their orientation leaders in adjusting to campus life. Chartier was among 70 seniors honored for their service at the Orientation Leaders Graduation Celebration at Slivy’s. The inaugural event was sponsored by the Office of First-Year Experience. Orientation leaders in attendance were fed, toasted and given pins for their graduation gowns. Ten seniors received special recognition for being three-year leaders, earning them an additional “GOAT” pin and a 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 ######### padfolio containing a certificate and a letter of appreciation.

70 seniors honored for their service at the Orientation Leaders Graduation Celebration.

1:24 p.m. | Mitchell Center

Big Red baseball team prepares for regionals

While extracurricular activities have ceased across much of campus, several 必博娱乐,比博娱乐网址 ######### athletics teams are competing at the NCAA level this week. The Big Red baseball team, ranked No. 2 in the nation, spent the afternoon training in the weight room. There was lifting, stretching, broad jumping, and plenty of hand slapping as players prepared to host this weekend’s double-elimination regional tournament. The host Big Red (35-5) face Manchester University (29-12) in their first game Friday.

The Big Red baseball team spent the afternoon training in the weight room.

11:32 a.m. | Slayter Hall

Registering for this week's activities

More than 600 seniors began picking up their wristbands at Slayter Hall for this week’s activities. Students were required to stop at a handful of stations, including one allowing them to remove their names from the Licking County voting roll. The station that produced the most smiles featured a Class of 2025 photo that had been taken four years earlier on Reese-Shackelford Common. Students scanned the large image, searching for themselves and friends before signing it. “I remember that day vividly,” Eliza Roach ’25 said. “I was on crutches from an ankle injury. It was so hot, and we were standing next to our classmates we just met.”

Seniors pose for a photo under the 2025 balloons in Slayter

10:23 a.m. | Reese-Shackelford Common

Getting campus ready for the big day

Campus hummed with the sounds of cleaning and decorating ahead of Commencement. There was whirring, whining, squeaking, grunting, and beeping. The big white tent was raised on Reese-Shackelford Common. Banners were hung. Slayter Hall and Burton Morgan Center received a power-washing courtesy of a drone, which splashed 12 gallons of water per minute on some of the harder-to-reach windows.