Lee University conferred 429 degrees on Saturday, May 9, during its spring commencement ceremony. Friends, family, and the Lee community gathered as Dr. David Hoag inspired graduates in Lee’s traditional ceremony, held on the South Campus Quad Lawn.
  
Drawing from the biblical parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10, Hoag challenged graduates to live lives marked by compassion, service, and action. Reflecting on the Samaritan’s response to the wounded man on the roadside, Hoag explained that the significance of the story was not simply that the Samaritan “felt something, but that he did something.”
  
“He allows compassion to become inconvenience,” said Hoag. “He allows mercy to become cost, and he allows love to become action. He crosses the road.”
  

Hoag encouraged graduates to carry those same values into their future vocations and relationships, reminding them that Christian calling is rooted not only in personal fulfillment, but also in stewardship, responsibility, and service to others.
  
“One of the greatest contributions of Christian higher education is that it does not separate conviction from calling,” said Hoag. “Vocation is about stewardship, responsibility, obedience, and service rendered unto Christ for the good of the world.”
  
As he concluded his address, Hoag urged graduates to move forward with both conviction and compassion.
  
“Go with strong minds and soft hearts,” said Hoag. “Go with confidence but also with humility. Go with excellence but also go with mercy… Bear witness to Jesus Christ not just in what you say, but in the kind of neighbor you become. Cross the road.”
  

Hoag currently serves as president of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU) and most recently served as president of Warner University from 2016-24. Throughout his career, he has held advancement and executive leadership roles at four CCCU institutions: Asbury University, Greenville University, Trinity International University, and Warner University.
  
He also previously served on the executive committee of the Independent Colleges and Universities of Florida and on the Council of Presidents for the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics.
  
Hoag earned a doctorate in higher education from Saint Louis University, a master’s degree in education from the University of Kentucky, and a bachelor’s degree in education from Asbury University.
  
Of the 429 degrees conferred on Saturday, there were 372 undergraduate and 57 graduate degrees. Of the 57 graduate degrees, four were doctoral degrees. The spring event is one of three graduation weekends at Lee each year. Lee also holds commencements in July and December.
  
Saturday’s ceremony was preceded by a pinning ceremony for nursing graduates; a hooding ceremony for recipients of master’s, education specialist, and doctoral degrees; and the Commissioning Service on Friday, which featured several graduating participants, including five student speakers sharing their Lee experience.
  
For more information about commencement weekend, contact the Academic Events Office at [email protected] or visit graduation-info/. 
  
To view the commencement and commissioning ceremonies, visit leeu.live.