Endings and Beginnings


By Stephanie Browne ’10

Ambassador Samantha Power, U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations, delivered the keynote address at Barnard’s 123rd Commencement on Sunday, May 17, telling students to work to break down “the remaining barriers to true equality.” Power spoke at the Theater at Madison Square Garden before more than 5,000 people, including Barnard’s 670 graduates, faculty, trustees, staff, family, and friends.


Power received the medal of distinction along with three other trailblazers: Simi Linton, a consultant and public speaker whose work focuses on disability and the arts; Nadia Lopez, principal of Mott Hall Bridges Academy, a public middle school in Brooklyn; and Diana Nyad, champion long-distance swimmer and author. To view a video of Commencement, visit barnard.edu/commencement.

Click on the gallery for enlarged photos.

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