On Friday, October 16, 2026, Crestmont University held its commencement ceremony, the most important event on the university’s calendar. This year carried extra weight. The Crestmont University commencement ceremony also celebrated 30 years of history for the institution formerly known as California Intercontinental University (CIU).
Graduates, families, faculty, and staff gathered for two ceremonies that day. Each followed the same academic order, with a different keynote speaker and student speaker. Together, they honored the class of 2026: the final class to graduate under the California Intercontinental University name, and the first to see the Crestmont University name presented on stage.
Two ceremonies, one class of Crestmont University graduates
Crestmont University offers associate, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in different specializations, all of which can be completed 100% online. Many graduates in the class of 2026 earned their degrees while working full time, raising families, or both. Some joined from outside the United States.
For a class that studied from different cities and countries, commencement brought everyone into the same room. Lt. Nnamdi Emenogu, one of the two student ambassador speakers, described the class this way: “We came from different countries, cultures, professions, and life experiences.”
Each ceremony moved through the traditional sequence of an American university commencement. It opened with “Pomp and Circumstance” as the platform party, faculty, and graduates entered in the academic procession. After the national anthem, David Rodriguez, Chief of Operations, welcomed guests, and Dr. Richard Madrigal, CEO, delivered the President’s Message. Dr. Erkut Sogut, LLM, gave the keynote address at the first ceremony, and Dr. Ashley Castle gave it at the second. Dr. William Talboys, Dean, shared remarks before the Faculty of the Year Award, which recognized Dr. Castle. Lt. Nnamdi Emenogu spoke for the students at the first ceremony, and Kimi Holloway spoke at the second. Dr. Talboys then presented the candidates, and Dr. Madrigal conferred the degrees. Gabriela Morales delivered the concluding remarks, and graduates left to “Trumpet Voluntary,” the recessional.
The academic procession follows a long tradition. American academic dress is based on English customs from Oxford and Cambridge. A uniform code for it was adopted in 1894 and later revised by the American Council on Education.
President’s message: “A new Name, but not a new purpose”
After welcome remarks from David Rodriguez, Dr. Richard Madrigal opened his message with the word everyone in the room had come for.
“We usually think of commencement as the ending,” he said, “the end of classes, assignments, late nights, and deadlines. But what commencement actually means, it means a beginning.”
He then connected that beginning to the university’s own. For 30 years, he said, California Intercontinental University was built on one idea: “that higher education should reach people where they are.” He added that the institution believed working adults “should not have to choose between their responsibilities and their education,” long before that idea was common.
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Then he announced the change. “California Intercontinental University is becoming Crestmont University. A new name, but not a new purpose.”
Dr. Madrigal named the beliefs that stay the same. Education should be accessible. Universities should adapt to the lives of their students. And, in his words, “talent is everywhere, but opportunity is not.” He also set a higher bar: stronger programs, higher standards, and a reputation built on what graduates do with their education, not only on access to it.
California Intercontinental University becomes Crestmont University
Dr. Madrigal spoke directly to the graduates about the timing. “You are the final graduating class known to this institution as California Intercontinental University,” he said. “That makes you part of history.”
He was also clear about what a degree can and can’t do. A degree, he said, cannot substitute for courage, judgment, discipline, or hard work. “It merely gives you another tool. What you build with it, it’s now up to you.”
He acknowledged the trade-offs graduates made to finish. Many earned their degrees while working or raising families, with responsibilities that “simply don’t disappear because there’s a Sunday night assignment.” His conclusion was direct: “You chose this and you finished it. That matters.”
He closed by handing the new name to the graduates. “When people ask you what kind of university Crestmont University is, the answer will not ultimately be a website, a logo, or a new name. It will come from you.” He listed where that answer would show up: in the organizations graduates lead, the businesses they build, the people they teach, and the communities they serve.
The ceremony then turned to the name change itself. A student ambassador carried the ceremonial mace to the stage. Universities have used the mace since the Middle Ages as a symbol of authority, and today it leads the academic procession at commencement. At Crestmont University, it stood for the academic traditions and values that carry over from California Intercontinental University.
Dr. Madrigal then unveiled the new Crestmont University logo. The room was asked to join in celebrating the moment, and the class of 2026 became the first to see the new name presented at a commencement.
Keynote speakers: Value created, ripples left behind
Each ceremony had its own keynote speaker. Both speeches looked past the degree to the effect graduates have on others.
Dr. Erkut Sogut, LLM, delivered the keynote at the first ceremony. His central line was about contribution, not credentials:
“Your career will not be built on what you take. It will be built on the value you create for others.”
Dr. Ashley Castle delivered the keynote at the second ceremony. She built her address around the ripple effect, where one action sets off a series of others:
“Recently, I was swimming in a pool and was thinking about the ripple effect. And as you swim, the ripples behind you navigate all the way through the pool, but in front of you, it remains pretty unbothered. So this made me think about our own personal lives. Just as in life, the future is unknown, but we all leave a ripple as we move forward in our daily lives.”
Her point fit the day. Graduates can’t see the full future in front of them, but the work behind them already reaches further than they may realize.
Dean remarks and the faculty of the year award
Dr. Aamar Moorjani, Dean, addressed graduates before the Faculty of the Year Award. The award recognized Dr. Ashley Castle, who also delivered the keynote at the second ceremony.
Later in the program, Dr. Moorjani presented the candidates for their degrees. That step is the formal hand-off from faculty to the university’s leadership, which then confers the degrees.
Student ambassador speakers: The climb and the distance
The student ambassador speeches came from inside the class of 2026. Both speakers described the effort behind the degree in specific, recognizable terms.
Lt. Nnamdi Emenogu: “You know how to climb”
At the first ceremony, Lt. Nnamdi Emenogu used the image of a mountain:
“Today all of us have reached another summit. Our mountains were different. We balanced careers, families, responsibilities, research papers, discussion posts, and deadlines, but we kept climbing.”
He drew the same image from the university’s new name:
“A crest is the top. A mount brings to mind the mountain. Crestmont, the mountaintop.”
He described the class as climbers who took different routes to the same place:
“We took different paths up the mountain. But today we meet at the crest and we did not climb alone.”
He thanked the families, friends, faculty, and classmates who supported graduates. He noted, to laughter, that they had heard “I only have one more assignment to submit” more than once. Reaching the summit, he said, gives graduates “a better view of what comes next.” He ended with a reminder for the next challenge: “There will be other mountains. … When they do, remember what you’ve already proved. You know how to climb.”
Kimi Holloway: The distance between who we were and who we are
At the second ceremony, Kimi Holloway described what the degree measures:
“This moment represents so much more than the completion of a degree. It represents the distance between who we were when we first began this journey and who we have become standing here today.”
She said that distance can’t be counted in credit hours, research papers, or dissertations. It is measured in sacrifice, uncertainty, and the moments when quitting seemed easier.
Her description of perseverance was the most concrete line of the day:
“Perseverance is not always dramatic. Sometimes it is writing one more paragraph when you would rather go to sleep. Sometimes it is logging into class after a long day of work. And sometimes perseverance is simply refusing to give up on a future that you cannot fully see yet.”
Anyone who has studied after a full workday will recognize that list. It describes how most degrees in the room were earned: one paragraph and one late login at a time.
Conferral of degrees and concluding remarks
Dr. Richard Madrigal conferred the degrees on the class of 2026. Gabriela Morales delivered the concluding remarks. Graduates then left the stage to “Trumpet Voluntary,” the recessional.
Dr. Madrigal had summed up the day earlier in his message: “Two journeys meet. For us, one chapter closes, another begins. And for each of you, same.” He ended with a welcome, not a farewell: “I want to congratulate the class of 2026 and welcome to the beginning.”
What the class of 2026 carries forward
The 2026 commencement closed one chapter for the institution and for its graduates. California Intercontinental University’s last class is also the first class of Crestmont University alumni.
Each speech added a piece. Dr. Sogut asked graduates to measure their careers by the value they create for others. Dr. Castle reminded them that their work already reaches further than they can see. Lt. Emenogu and Kimi Holloway described the evenings, deadlines, and family support behind every diploma.
Every speaker returned to the same idea. A degree records something difficult that was finished. What graduates do next is theirs to decide.
If you are a working professional weighing your own next step, the path these graduates took is open to you. Start with the Doctor of Business Administration (DBA), which you can complete 100% online. Review the specializations and admission requirements, then speak with an enrollment advisor about how a doctorate fits your schedule.
Congratulations to the class of 2026.
