NORWICH - Parents, relatives and friends braved wind and rain to cheer on the graduates of Morrisville State College’s Class of 2006 during the college’s 95th commencement which was held on Drake Field at the main campus in Morrisville.

Sixty-eight students completed requirements for graduation from the Norwich Campus during the academic year.

Morrisville State College President, Dr. Ray Cross, was joined by Norwich Campus Dean, Dr. Ted Nichols, Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, James Van Riper, school deans and members of the college council in presiding over the ceremony, which began with a 20-piece Scottish Bagpipe Band and herald trumpeters leading graduates into the formal commencement exercises.

Jody Harris, Norwich Campus Student Government Organization president, gave the student address. She encouraged graduates to persevere in overcoming obstacles they will encounter in their lives.

Cross bid the graduates good luck in their future endeavors, and encouraged them as they entered a new phase of their lives.

“Some of you may look upon commencement as an end,” he said. “I encourage you to see it as the beginning of the next phase of your lives. It is time to set new goals and begin new challenges.”