New beginnings but not goodbye

May isn’t just a beautiful month in Chapel Hill – it’s a joyous one.

The 2025 spring commencement at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill honored 6,829 graduates:

• 4,358 undergraduates
• 1,487 master students
• 962 doctoral students

From May 9-10, UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School graduates celebrated during ceremonies for their business-degree programs and the wider University.

Graduates in the Undergraduate Business Program included 386 majors, 45 minors and 11 real estate minors. Lucas Dipietrantonio (BSBA ’19), CEO and co-founder of Darkroom, told the future business leaders how to be useful, prosperous and live fulfilling lives during his keynote address at their ceremony in Carmichael Arena.

Ginger Jacobson (BSBA ’25) credits UNC Kenan-Flagler with challenging her to “think critically, lead with purpose and integrity and persevere.” She leaves Carolina “not only with a degree, but an incredible network I’m proud to be a part of” as she heads to New York to join Goldman Sachs’ alternative capital markets group.

“Growing up, attending UNC and sporting the best blue was always a dream” for Emory Lyda (BSBA ’25), so graduating felt “incredibly special.” Before he heads to Florida State University College of Law, he’ll keep working with Kart Chaser as a producer and podcast host: “Building the sport of karting in the United States has been a personal goal of mine for a long time.”

Incredible classmates from around the U.S. and the globe are now lifelong friends, says Kwabena Frimpong (MBA ’25).

Minni Marwaha (MBA/MHA ’08), Deebo founder and CEO, gave the keynote address for the MBA programs at the Dean E. Smith Center. “This is hands down one of the most meaningful honors of my life,” she wrote on LinkedIn. “UNC is where I earned three degrees, where I built the foundation for my career in healthcare, and where I first learned to lead with both head and heart.”

The Full-Time MBA Program’s 255 graduates awarded Professor Alex Dickey the Gerald Barrett Faculty Award.

The online MBA@UNC Program’s 129 graduates honored Professor Atul Nerkar with their top teaching award, and 17 students received the Leadership Academy Certificate, the first graduates to earn this new credential in the MBA@UNC program.

Parmeet Sangha (MBA ’25) realized his “childhood dream of studying at an international institution” and Chapel Hill has become his second home: “I’ve made so many unforgettable memories that I’ll cherish forever. Whether it was the early morning core classes or the fun weekend ones, cheering for the Tar Heels at Kenan Stadium or Dean Dome, or the countless walks around the beautiful UNC campus, the spirit of Carolina was always with me, guiding and supporting me every step of the way.”

While deployed, U.S. Navy Instructor Lincoln Boyd (MBA ’25) was in his shipping-container room in Bahrain when he submitted and later conducted his virtual interview, wearing “a blue suit on my top half and running shorts on my bottom half with the adhan, or call to prayer, faintly audible in the background.”

Boyd is grateful for his professors “who spent countless hours breaking down concepts, reviewing my amateurish papers and responses, and truly caring for student development” and his peers, with whom he worked through “the confusion, case studies, annual reports, 10-Ks, Excel spreadsheets, late nights, weekend meetings and group projects. I appreciate each and every one of you for your contributions.”

Aly Egan (MBA ’25) with her mother, Heather Egan (BSBA ’86).

Nine PhD students participated in the Graduate School’s Doctoral Hooding Ceremony at the Dean E. Smith Center. They have accepted positions at the University of Colorado Boulder, University of Michigan, University of Texas at Austin, University of Texas at Dallas, State University of New York, Belmont University, UNC Kenan-Flagler and the company Davincisbrain.

Alyssa Tedder-King (BA ’11, PhD ’25) is heading to the University of Maryland to join the faculty after earning her PhD in organizational behavior. “Reaching this milestone has been both humbling and deeply rewarding.” She is “incredibly grateful to the mentors, colleagues, coauthors and the broader academic community whose support, feedback and encouragement” shaped her journey. Her classmates’ “camaraderie made it possible to grow, stumble and thrive.”

The Carolina team – and family

For the second year, Carolina held commencement at night under the Kenan Stadium lights, punctuating the celebration with fireworks.

Keynote speaker Mia Hamm (BA ’94), widely considered the greatest women’s soccer player of all time, gave the keynote address.

“It takes a team working in sync to truly succeed, said the Tar Heel sports legend. “You need people with different skills, different strengths, different approaches to solving problems.”

Hamm shared lessons she learned in team building:

• Aim for unity, not uniformity.
• Carry the water: So many tasks need to get done and most are not very glamorous or fun. Will you pitch in?
• Don’t miss out on the joy.
• Put the team first and success will follow.

The Class of 2025 will “always and forever be part of the Carolina team. Our team,” said Hamm. “Graduates of the University of North Carolina. This is our university. The University of the people. And from the first day you stepped on this campus until your last breath, you will always have a home here.”

Mia Hamm (BA ’94) addresses graduates.

Amy Russell (MBA ’25), thought back to the “younger version of me – who grew up watching Mia Hamm redefine what leadership and grit looked like” and she “would have been so excited to know that one day I’d be listening to her give a commencement speech, sharing life lessons through the lens of teamwork.”

Teamwork was true of her MBA@UNC experience, says Russell. “So much of the work happened in teams – from group assignments and late-night study sessions to long-term projects that challenged us to combine our strengths and perspectives. My MBA made me truly appreciate the way group work pushes you to grow and see problems differently. Thank you to every classmate, teammate, and professor who made this experience so meaningful. I’m excited for what’s ahead—and so grateful for the team that helped me get here.”

The Master of Accounting Program will celebrate 90 graduates from the campus program on June 20. Hillary Salo (BSBA ’02, MAC ’03), vice chair of the Financial Accounting Standards Board, will be the keynote speaker.

Learn more about the UNC-Chapel Hill spring commencement ceremony.