Yorkville University marked a new milestone last month, hosting its first-ever autumn convocation ceremonies in New Brunswick.
Dr. Julia Christensen Hughes, Yorkville’s President and Vice Chancellor, kicked off the pair of ceremonies at the Fredericton Convention Centre by recognizing the significance of the occasion.
“I’m delighted to be with all of you here today as we recognize an important first: this is our inaugural fall convocation week for New Brunswick – a consequence of growing enrolments in our programs,” she said in her opening remarks of the October 29 and 30 ceremonies, during which the accomplishments of close to 950 Master of Arts in Counselling Psychology (MACP) and Doctor of Counselling and Psychotherapy (DCP) graduates – 250 of whom were on hand to be recognized in person – were celebrated.
“I believe this (growth) represents increased awareness of the role Yorkville University programs are playing within Canada and around the world, and I’m so proud of the students who join us here at Yorkville, inspired to make a positive difference in society.”
Opening Remarks
Christensen Hughes also took a moment during her address to graduates to showcase another newly launched Yorkville tradition – the on-stage display of flags representing each of Canada’s 10 provinces and three territories.
“This is so significant, because we attract students from each and every province and territory in Canada, as well as numerous other countries from around the world,” she said.
“I particularly love hearing from students who live in really remote regions of this beautiful country who are aspiring to give service to others within their home communities – and it’s because of that commitment to their communities and families, that it is an online degree from Yorkville that makes their aspirations come true.”
Also on hand at the ceremonies was Dr. Michelle Grimes, Yorkville’s Vice President, Academic and Campus Principal, New Brunswick, who noted the graduation ceremonies’ role in marking both an ending and a beginning.
“Each of you are beginning a new chapter in your journey as you mark this extraordinary achievement and begin or deepen your professional lives with the learning and experiences of your Yorkville education,” she said.
“And that education includes many people who helped you along the way, as well as those behind the scenes, who are helping you and helping your experience.”
Distinguished Speaker Dr. Deborah Seabrook
Dr. Deborah Seabrook, a member of the MACP faculty and one of the inaugural recipients of Yorkville’s President’s Award for Teaching Excellence, opened her address by acknowledging the multiple demands graduates juggled throughout their studies – jobs, childcare, families, and finances – all while also showcasing both their vulnerability in skills labs and determination in completing rigorous coursework.
She then guided graduates through a powerful visualization exercise, asking them to imagine the people who supported their journey filling the convention centre. First came family members, friends, and teachers. Then role models and “wise elders whose art, writing, thinking, music, shaped you and sustained you.”
Seabrook expanded this vision further, inviting graduates to consider countless unnamed individuals: delivery workers, those maintaining electricity infrastructure, farmers, and water purification plant workers.
“These are only a few examples of all the people who had a part in this moment,” she noted, imagining the space expanding to hold thousands.
She extended the reflection beyond humanity to include “the more-than-human world” – pollinators, soil nutrients, trees providing clean air, and water systems.
“It is more than interconnection, it is interdependence,” Seabrook emphasized, urging graduates to carry forward both their achievement and “the knowledge of our profound and irrefutable interdependence on one another and the living world.”
Connecting this awareness to counselling practice, she posed a guiding question: “How does holding this awareness of interdependence with all living things inform how you want to be in relationship, with yourself, with your clients, and with it all?”
Seabrook ended her address by encouraging graduates to hold this question “not as a problem to be solved, but as a gentle companion of inquiry and challenge” throughout their careers.
Distinguished Speaker Dr. Rahul Jain
Seabrook’s fellow MACP professor Dr. Rahul Jain also delivered a powerful tribute to the resilience and dedication that brought graduates to the milestone moment of their graduation.
Acknowledging the honor of receiving Yorkville University’s President’s Teaching Excellence Award, Jain emphasized that the recognition reflects something deeper: “the spirit of learning, perseverance, and compassion that defines our Yorkville community.”
He painted a vivid picture of the graduates’ journeys, noting how they balanced demanding academic work with life’s complexities.
“Many of you balanced full-time work, family responsibilities, caregiving, and unexpected challenges while pursuing a degree that demands not only intellect but emotional honesty,” he said, noting that, while some studied after exhausting shifts, others wrote papers with children beside them, and many “mastered the rare art of turning caffeine into academic endurance.”
Drawing on his own teaching experience, Jain shared a fundamental insight: “Education doesn’t wait for life to calm down – it’s what helps us meet life as it is. It’s the quiet courage to keep showing up, even when the world feels loud.”
He reminded graduates that growth in counselling is non-linear, requiring deep listening and presence amid uncertainty. The journey they’ve undertaken, he said, goes beyond deadlines and rubrics, representing “the culmination of a deeply personal and professional journey – one defined by resilience, reflection, and the decision to keep going when life was already full.”
“And yet – here you are. You did it,” Jain said, before urging graduates to: “Dream boldly. Work with purpose. Lead with heart.”
Student Graduation Speaker Cassandra Perri
MACP graduate Cassandra Perri – who stood before her fellow graduates while wearing “many hats” as daughter, sister, wife, mother, friend, and psychotherapist – centered her address around a powerful metaphor shared by her professor, Dr. LoriAnn Stretch.
“As a psychotherapist, it is my job to hold the bowl – not a real one, but an imaginary bowl that represents the safe space we create for others,” Perri explained. “It’s not my role to add to it or control what’s inside, but to hold it with care and purpose as clients pour out their thoughts, concerns, and experiences.”
She invited graduates across all disciplines to consider where they “hold the bowl” in their own work – whether as teachers enabling learning, project managers coordinating evolving components, or therapists creating space for client experiences.
“All these bowls have a common function: they help create opportunities for growth, reflection, and new possibilities,” she noted, while also emphasizing that therapists have agency in choosing which bowl to use.
“I like to imagine that I have a collection of bowls that I can hold – a colourful one to challenge the client who sees the world in black and white, a small one for the client who feels easily overwhelmed, and a sturdy, thick bowl for the client who struggles to trust that their thoughts are safe,” she said, acknowledging that as collections grow and bowls fill with “work, emotions, and stories, they may grow heavy.”
Her reminder to graduates: “It’s okay to put them down to take time to breathe, recharge and to care for yourself.”
Perri concluded by encouraging graduates to build their collections “with courage, authenticity, and purpose,” ensuring their bowls always reflect “the very best of who you are and all you aspire to be.”
Student Graduation Speaker Daveena Sangha
During her address, Daveena Sangha reflected on her and her fellow MACP graduates’ shared journey from anxiously awaiting their Yorkville acceptance emails to standing as newly minted counselling psychology graduates.
“Standing here today feels a little surreal. It wasn’t that long ago that many of us were nervously refreshing our inboxes, waiting to see the words: “Congratulations, you’ve been accepted into the Master of Arts in Counselling Psychology Program at Yorkville University,” she recalled.
“In that moment, we stepped into something bigger than ourselves, a calling to understand, to listen, and to help,” she said.
Sangha’s speech expressed gratitude to the faculty, practicum supervisors, and loved ones who supported her and her cohort through late-night papers and countless reading hours. She also acknowledged the unique bond formed among classmates who “created WhatsApp groups to stay connected across provinces throughout Canada.”
“Even though many of us have never met in person, we still found meaningful ways to build community through our screens,” she said.
Drawing on her internship experience at the Chilliwack Youth Health Centre, Sangha shared a guiding principle: “Every person’s life is worth a novel.”
“Standing here today, I think that’s true for each of us. Our lives, the chapters that brought us into this program and the ones still being written, remind us that meaning is found in the stories we shared and the connections we build,” she said.
“We learned that healing doesn’t come from having all the answers, but from listening deeply. That growth often begins in discomfort. And that the most powerful thing we can offer is not advice, but presence.”
Sangha’s address to her fellow grad concluded with a powerful quote from former U.N. Ambassador Adlai E. Stevenson – “When you leave here, don’t forget why you came.”
“We came here because we believed in the possibility of growth, in ourselves and in others; because we wanted to be a part of something meaningful; and because we knew that, in a world that can sometimes feel fractured, listening is an act of hope,” she said.
“So, to my fellow Yorkville graduates: keep showing up with courage, compassion, and curiosity. Keep doing the work that matters. And remember, this isn’t the end of our journey, because now, the real work begins.”
Closing Remarks & Cap Toss
In her closing remarks, Christensen Hughes took a moment to encourage graduates to take to heart the teachings of American author and business leadership speaker Simon Sinek.
“He really encourages people to know their ‘why’ – to know their purpose, to not take their life and their gifts and their challenges for granted, but to turn any challenges you have ever faced into more gifts, so you can be of service to others,” she said. “I have no doubt that each one of you will do that and continue to make us so very proud.”
Then, asking the graduates in attendance to rise, Christensen Hughes instructed all to, on the count of three, toss their caps in the air and “make a noise that reflects the emotion you are feeling – be it a primal scream of relief or joy.”
“Graduates, are we ready? One, two, three!”
