Commencement
Commencement Schedule
4 p.m. - Quaker Leadership Scholars Student Celebration in the Moon Room, Dana Auditorium
- 6 p.m. - Lavender Ceremony in Joseph M. Bryan Jr Auditorium
- 6:30 p.m. - BAGC pinning, Carnegie Room, Hege Academic Commons
- 4:30-5:30 p.m. - Senior Happy Hour, Founders Terrace
- 5:30 - 6:30 p.m. - Toast to the Light, Founders Terrace
- 11 a.m. - Baccalaureate Ceremony in Dana Auditorium
- 12 p.m. - Community Lunch in Founders Dining Hall (outdoor seating on the Quad)
- 12:30 p.m. - Stage Party Rehearsal
- 1:30 p.m. - Graduation Rehearsal in the Quad (rain location: Ragan-Brown Field House)
Congratulations to the Guilford College Class of 2026!
The Guilford community warmly invites you to join the celebration of Commencement in the College's 189th year Saturday, May 9, at 9 am. It will be held on the Guilford College Academic Quad or in Ragan-Brown Field House (in case of rain).
- At Commencement, Guilford will honor approximately 230 students who have earned bachelor’s or master’s degrees in the past year.
- Martha S. Jones, Ph.D., a nationally recognized historian, Johns Hopkins University faculty member and author with deep family roots in Greensboro, will be the invited speaker at Commencement and will receive an honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters from Guilford.
- Jahmarley Vivens ’26, Business major and Sociology minor, will speak for the graduating class.
- The College will present the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Awards to Esther Hall '74, Alba Argueta Garcia '26 and August Hutchins '26.
- Brenda Esch ’83, pastoral minister at New Garden Friends Meeting, will offer words of inspiration and welcome the class as alumni.
- Tammy Martin, Assistant Registrar, will serve as College Marshal.
- Music will be performed by the Quaker Jazz Quartet led by music faculty member Matt Reid ’16, and the College Choir led by music faculty member Cristian Albee.
- Baccalaureate will be Friday, May 8, at 11 am in Dana Auditorium, followed by a community-wide picnic.
- Commencement rehearsal will be held on the Academic Quad Friday, May 8, at 1 pm.
A complete listing of Candidates is available here.
Read the Commencement 2026 Program (Saturday, May 9, on the Academic Quad)
Read the Baccalaureate 2026 Program (Friday, May 8, in Dana Auditorium) Watch live HERE
Watch the Commencement Livestream
The Guilford community warmly invites you to join the celebration of Commencement online beginning at 9 am Saturday, May 9. Watch HERE.
Information for Families and Guests
In addition to regularly marked spaces, the entire section of parking on George Fox Drive between New Garden Road and Levi Coffin Drive will be reserved for persons with disabilities during Commencement.
The College will engage the services of a photographer, who will photograph each graduating senior individually as his or her diploma is presented. We provide this service to ensure this moment is captured, thus relieving parents and friends of any need for photographing. An email will be sent to the graduating senior the week after Commencement with proofs and information on how to order. You can also search the photo proofs at gradimages.com.
The College encourages all graduating students to share news of this milestone with their hometown newspaper(s) and websites. To make this easy for you, we've prepared a template that you may customize with details about your personal Guilford experience.
How to Write and Send Your News Release
- Save this news release template (.docx) to your computer.
- Personalize the release by replacing the bracketed information with details about your experience at Guilford.
- Identify the contact information for your local newspaper(s) and/or websites. Graduation announcements are usually directed to a general newsroom email address and not to specific reporters. To find that address, visit the paper's website, and look for a "Contact Us" page. The newsroom email address should be on that page. If not, search for the editor of the regional edition of the paper and send the release to them.
- Copy your news release directly into the body of an email (do not send your announcement as an attachment). Use the subject line Local Resident Graduates from Guilford College.
Note: Newsrooms are often inundated with emails, so we recommend that you keep your release short and to the point.
You will find our updated Accommodations for Visitors here.
Hotel accommodations for this event are available at the link below. Please click the link for your hotel of choice to book directly.
Should the weather forecast be such that holding Commencement outside is not possible, communication to the community will happen on the Thursday immediately prior to Saturday's ceremony. The rain location for Commencement is in Ragan Brown Field House. Each graduate will be given three tickets with the possibility for additional tickets pending the number distributed.