Hundreds of students crossed a stage at the Charles Jago Northern Sport Centre in Prince George on Friday, June 30 to receive their degrees in front of friends and loved ones in two ceremonies marking the University of Northern British Columbia’s 32nd convocation.
In both the morning and afternoon, students put on their gowns and then formed a circle in the university’s bus loop as members of the University Hospital of Northern British Columbia Traditional Drummers performed.
Under a drumbeat, students participating in the morning trekked to the sports centre and wound their way through the building before they and faculty members were led into their seats on the gymnasium floor by another group of drummers, the Thundering Eagles.
At one point, dignitaries were led in behind both someone carrying a banner bearing UNBC’s coat of arms and another person carrying the university’s talking stick.
After Dawn Zemoura led attendees in a round of O Canada, Elder Lenora White welcomed visitors to the traditional territory of Lheidli T’enneh First Nation and read a message on behalf Chief Dolleen Logan.
“Shoot for the moon, if you miss, you’ll always been a star,” White said. “She encourages you to stay within the northern regions to live, work and embrace our well-defined four seasons. Lheidli believes in striving for your best, always looking ahead to the future.”
Chancellor Darlene McIntosh, another Lheidli T’enneh elder, said after saying hello in the Dakelh language it was exciting to see graduates receive their degrees.
“2025 has been a year full of challenges for our world,” McIntosh said. “Climate change continues to affect us all, war still rages in Ukraine and Gaza, our water remain low and many communities are impacted by wildfires.
“The cost of living has skyrocketed, making it harder for young people to find homes while homelessness continues to rise and the lives that are lost on the streets.”
She said there’s a lot of political tension as well, especially regarding the idea of Canada's annexation by the United States.
Despite those difficulties, she said there’s still hope as Canada has come together with determination and is taking steps towards self-sufficiency and resilience.
She urged those present to connect with the beauty and wisdom of Mother Earth and to take part in the responsibility to make things better for future generations. This, she said, she has confidence this year’s graduates can do.
University president Geoff Payne was next, joking that while he had glasses on hand as a prop for his first convocation, he now can’t get by without them. As president, he said there are no happier days than convocation days.
“Thirty-five years ago, UNBC was just an idea,” he said. “It began with a vision and the boldness of thousands of northerners who believed in the power of a homegrown university. Today, you are proof that vision was worth it.”
He also thanked those who organized the ceremony and volunteered to assist with them for making it a special day for graduates.
Following Payne’s remarks, Christine Añoneuvo was presented with the Governor General’s Gold Medal and Sean Robinson was given the Lieutenant Governor’s Silver Medal for Inclusion, Democracy and/or Reconciliation. Robinson was also the ceremony’s valedictorian.
Nak’azdli Whu’ten elder Yvonne Pierreroy was then presented with a honorary doctor of laws degree for her work in preserving the Dakelh language.
She gave her speech in both English and Dakelh. She described her background at the beginning of her remarks, saying it is her people’s custom to introduce themselves.
“When my formal education took me away from home, partially in a residential school and partly in a boarding home, I always maintained my Dakelh language and culture, which has been central to my identity,” Pierreroy said.
She said her journey at UNBC started in 1992 when she became an executive assistant before the institution’s doors opened.
In the years since, she said she was involved in establishing the school’s First Nations Centre, mentoring both students and staff, the group of students that recommended “’en cha hunà” become the school’s motto, co-ordinating international conferences on Indigenous issues, developing and teaching four levels of Dakelh language and culture courses, naming the university’s residences Neyoh and Keyoh and more.
With the remarks and initial honours finished, orator Jacqueline Holler — an associate professor in UNBC’s history faculty — read out the names of each student, who then went up on the stage to claim their diploma.
Doctoral students came first, then students receiving master’s degrees, then those earning bachelor’s degrees then those who obtained certificates.
The second ceremony was much the same, except this time geography department associate professor Zoë Meletis served as orator, longtime Prince George MLA Shirley Bond was conferred an honorary doctor of laws degree and Guowei Li was the valedictorian.
In a speech, Bond said she was “deeply grateful and honestly a little overwhelmed in the best possible way.”
“For the graduating class, thank you for letting me share your special day,” Bond said. “We have arrived at this moment from different pathways, but I am deeply honoured to be included in your graduation day.”
She thanked her family for their support as she pursued a life of public service, including her late husband Billy.
Ceremonies have yet to be held at UNBC’s other campuses.
The Wilp Wilxo’oskwhl Nisga’a Institute campus will confer degrees to its students on Monday, June 2, the Terrace campus is hold its ceremony on Tuesday, June 3, the Fort St. John campus celebrate graduates on Friday, June 6 and the Quesnel campus will round out the schedule on Wednesday, June 11.
Between all the ceremonies, 784 credentials are being handed out. That’s not the total number of students graduating as some people earned two credentials.
