Some Staten Island students and the school leader charged with shaping their education, came together one last time before moving on to the next chapter in their lives. 

Wagner College's school's President, Richard Guarasci, stood on the graduation stage for the final time before his retirement at the school's 134th commencement ceremony Friday. The Ditmas Park native took the reins 17 years ago, making him the longest serving President in the college's history. To celebrate, Wagner awarded him an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree on Friday. Guarasci humbly says the honor is his. "It's been a wonderful run here for 22 years. The campus has honored us in so many ways and it's such a privilege to be part of this graduating class with them."​

In addition to the 439 bachelors degrees, 179 masters degrees and 12 doctorate degrees handed out, Wagner also posthumously awarded a degree to the family of a Wagner MBA student who was killed on his Baltimore lawn during winter break.