Nearly 300 students from St. Francis College received their diplomas and a hug from College President Frank Macchiarola '62 at the spring commencement ceremony Monday, May 21 at the Brooklyn Marriott.

Colleges across the country are constantly looking for ways to make sure every student that enrolls at college stays until they graduate. St. Francis College has devoted many of its resources to the problem and now is being recognized for the innovative ways the College is tackling the issue of retention.

Imagine getting fifteen years of experience running an international corporation in just one semester at college. Now imagine competing against hundreds of other companies at dozens of schools and coming out right at the top.

The Iraq War, Adoption Fraud, How to Maintain a Successful Marriage, Rats, those were just some of the topics of the persuasive speeches by St. Francis College students at the annual Delaney Speech Contest Monday afternoon.

St. Francis College celebrated the 123rd Anniversary of New York State granting the college a charter last Friday with more than 150 alumni and special guests in attendance.

"When [Andrew W. Cooper] filed the complaint in the U.S. District Court, he was well aware that he was launching a missile at the powerful political forces in the city and the state, Republican and Democratic," said Basil Paterson, the keynote speaker at the 40th Anniversary celebration of Cooper v Power, speaking about the lawsuit that led to the creation of a predominantly African-American congressional seat in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn.

There are several familiar faces in the new film Zodiac, which opens this week across the country, like Jake Gyllenhaal and Robert Downey, Jr., but one face will also be familiar to thousands of St. Francis College students in particular who had the honor of taking classes with Professor Emeritus, Ed Setrakian.

More than a hundred students, staff and community members filled the Maroney Forum for Arts, Culture and Education Monday for the annual Yom HaShoah observance at St. Francis College. The guest lecture, "On the Holocaust and Forgiveness," was presented by Professor Andrew Kelley from Bradley University.

For St. Francis College junior Chemistry Major Michael Estrella, Orlando, the home of Disney World was definitely the happiest place on earth last week. He won first prize for the NOBCChE Undergraduate Research Award Competition after presenting his research at the organization's Annual Conference. Not only did Estrella take home the $1,000 cash prize, but he was also offered a $60,000 job at chemical engineering company Rohm and Haas.

NCAA March Madness is over and the euphoria and sadness of basketball fans is now tapering off. But what many people don't realize is that now the student-athletes have to return to an equally difficult task, completing their college education.