Honorary degree recipients and Commencement

Dear members of the class of 2021,

As your time at Mount Holyoke draws to close, I write to acknowledge the many changes wrought by the pandemic on your senior year, celebrations and ceremonies. It is not the year that we imagined for you, and the conclusion to it, while not our usual large in-person gathering with friends and family, will be one that I hope you will nevertheless remember for its heartfelt celebration of you and your many accomplishments. 

I extend my thanks to the Class Board of 2021 for all its hard work, and for the members’ thoughtfulness and care for your class as we have worked through the many constraints and the planning for these celebrations. There are many others working behind the scenes to ensure that the senior events next week incorporate the traditions and moments that you told us mattered most to you, and that these are fully celebrated — even as we respect all the health and safety conditions imposed by this moment. 

While your commencement ceremony itself will be virtual, streamed around the United States and the world to your classmates and their loved ones, I want to reassure you that it will be a ceremony to remember — one that marks the creativity, energy, intellectual power and potential of the great class of 2021.

And so, on behalf of the 2021 Class Board and the Mount Holyoke College Board of Trustees, it is my very great pleasure to share with you the 2021 honorary degree recipients. 

2021 Honorary Degree Recipients 

For your Commencement, we have chosen to celebrate the trailblazing achievements of three exceptionally distinguished individuals in the arts and public service. These honorary degree recipients, each in their own way, are reshaping the world and demonstrating the excellence, empathy, creativity, imagination and social commitment that we associate with Mount Holyoke graduates. I am so very pleased to announce that, joining you in receiving a degree from Mount Holyoke this year, are the following honorees:

• Rabiya Javeri-Agha ’83 is a driving force of change within Pakistan. She has worked for 37 years in public service, making her one of the most senior civil service officers in the government of Pakistan. She was also the first female president of the Pakistan Administrative Service, representing civil service officers across the country. In her executive role as secretary of the Federal Ministry of Human Rights, Javeri-Agha and a team of 1,500 colleagues across the country worked on promoting and protecting the rights of women, children and the most vulnerable. She was instrumental in the drafting and enactment of 18 human rights legislations, including Pakistan’s progressive law The Rights of Transgender Persons Act. 
• Yo-Yo Ma is one of the world’s most renowned cellists. His life and career are testament to his enduring belief in culture’s power to generate trust and understanding. Yo-Yo Ma has recorded more than 100 albums, is the winner of 18 Grammy Awards and has performed for nine American presidents, most recently on the occasion of President Biden’s inauguration. He has received numerous awards, including the National Medal of the Arts, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the Kennedy Center Honors. He has been a United Nations Messenger of Peace since 2006 and was recognized as one of Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of 2020. He is also a Mount Holyoke spouse, married to alum Jill Hornor ’74, whom he met at the Marlboro Music Festival in 1972.
• Chloé Zhao ’05 is the writer and director of the film “Nomadland,” which swept the 93rd annual Academy Awards. The film won Oscars for best picture and best director, as well as a best actress award for Frances McDormand. Zhao is the first woman of color to receive an Academy Award for best director, and only the second woman ever to win in that category. Zhao has won much critical acclaim and attention for her work: Her first feature film, “Songs My Brother Taught Me,” premiered to praise at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. Her second film, “The Rider,” took the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival Directors’ Fortnight in 2017. Her next film, “Eternals,” is part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and will be released in November 2021. 

Commencement 2021 and Reunion 2023

May 23rd’s virtual Commencement, while different from any before it, will include some familiar elements. Each graduate will be celebrated with the traditional reading of all of the graduating students’ names for the class of 2021 and a display of your submitted photos. There will be remarks from your student Commencement speaker, from me, and from the honorary degree recipients. We will also have processional music for the start and for the closing of the ceremony. 

Next Saturday, May 15, as we build up to the Commencement celebrations, we will be holding MoHomecoming. All seniors and graduating students, including remote students, are welcome to return to campus for an in-person social event. Please register by Tuesday, May 11 to join your classmates and friends on campus to reconnect and have final M&Cs. 

For your two-year Reunion, in 2023, the College is also planning on holding a Laurel Parade, Strawberries and Champagne, and Canoe Sing. The Alumnae Association will work with the 2021 Class Board to identify and plan for other traditions and events to hold at this Reunion. If you have ideas or suggestions, please connect with your Class Board. 

While the continuing public health conditions prevent us from being together on campus in this ongoing pandemic, and our thoughts are especially with those in locations still struggling to contain new and destructive waves of infection, I know that the entire College is looking forward to celebrating your persistence and accomplishments and honoring all you have achieved during your time here. Resilience and determination will forever be a part of your class character and your history. We cannot wait to celebrate with you, now and in 2023, and to see what you do next.

With my very best wishes for finals and in anticipation of celebrating with you over the next two weeks,

Sonya