![](https://aucenter.edu/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/0U1A0210_resize-350x233.jpg)
From Saturday, May 20, to Monday, May 22, Atlanta University Center institutions celebrated graduation ceremonies for more than 1,600 students. In Morehouse School of Medicine’s commencement exercises Saturday, the 2017 graduating class of 57 medical doctors, 11 doctorate candidates and 41 public health, medical science, and clinical research master’s degree candidates received a welcomed surprise from MSM President and Dean Dr. Valerie Montgomery Rice.
![](https://aucenter.edu/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Morehouse-graduation-350x233.jpg)
Early Sunday morning in Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel, CNN political analyst Van Jones told nearly 300 Morehouse College graduates they “must lead the charge of a new, post-Obama era” at the college’s 133rd commencement. Included in the 300 were perfect 4.0 GPA co-valedictorians Michael C. Scott, of Rockville, Maryland, an economics major, and Douglas Bowen, of Montego Bay, Jamaica, also an economics major.
Check out Morehouse’s Facebook photos.
![](https://aucenter.edu/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Co-Valedictorians-Kwizera-and-Bannister-Spelman-2017-Commencement-960x641-350x234.jpg)
Sunday afternoon, Spelman College, also perfect, 4.0 co-valedictorians, Muhire Kwizera, a mathematics major from Kigali, Rwanda, K’yal Bannister, a chemistry/dual degree engineering major from Bushnell, Florida, and 488 other graduates were told by Valerie Jarrett, former senior adviser to President Barack Obama: “Change often seems impossible until we make it inevitable.”
See Spelman’s commencement photo gallery.
Hometown girl Jakayla Woolridge was named Clark Atlanta
![](https://aucenter.edu/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/jakayla-woolridge-17-val-350x460.jpg)
University’s valedictorian. A product of Atlanta Public Schools’ Carver Early College, Woolridge graduated with more than 700 CAU classmates receiving their bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral and specialist degrees.