The California Institute of the Arts community, friends and family saw Graduation Courtyard live up to its name as it hosted the class of 2025’s transition from students to alumni. Organized around the theme “light,” the day signaled a time for joy, reflection and the promise of new beginnings.

The graduation ceremony was held at the Valencia campus on Friday, May 16.

The day’s festivities kicked off in the Main Entrance with performances by the CalArts Balinese Gamelan Ensemble and Balinese Dance, directed by School of Music faculty Nyoman Wenten and Nanik Wenten, respectively.

At 4 p.m., CalArtians and their guests gathered in the Main Gallery for the President’s Reception for Family and Friends, where attendees enjoyed tunes by the student-run East-West Band until Graduation Courtyard opened for seating at 5 p.m.

The annual procession of graduating students and CalArts leadership, led by the African Music and Dance Ensemble, signaled the start of commencement.

Tataviam Elder Dennis Garcia (Fernandeño Tataviam/Chumash) delivered the invocation after the students were seated, followed by addresses by Provost Tracie Costantino, Student Union President Mia Condon, Chair of the Board of Trustees Charmaine Jefferson and President Ravi Rajan.

The celebration continued with the two 2025 honorary degree recipients. The first went to mixed-media artist and CalArts alum Barbara Carrasco (Art MFA 1991), who was introduced by her friend, iconic labor leader and feminist Dolores Huerta.

“It’s my great honor to be able to bestow and introduce a person who is receiving the honorary award, and this is a person who came from a working-class family, a family that didn’t have a lot of privileges,” said Huerta. “But she used her art to be able to show the world what it is about all of the people that make up a society, including farm workers, laborers, politicians, people that are often discriminated against.”

Carrasco stepped onstage, sharing her experiences working with the United Farm Workers of America and the Dolores Huerta Foundation, her legendary 1981 mural “LA History: A Mexican Perspective,” and the impact of her time at CalArts.

“It’s important to create powerful works of art utilizing traditional media and state-of-the-art-technology,” said Carrasco. “Respect, inclusivity and diversity is essential to making art that reflects social reality.”

She also described her experience as an arts educator, describing the passing on of knowledge to new generations of artists as a “really great honor,” and that she is “looking forward to creating other works of art and other projects that promote peace and human rights.”

The second honorary doctorate went to award-winning actor and producer Drew Barrymore, who accepted the honor in a prerecorded video. She congratulated the class of 2025 on their accomplishments and urged the graduates to apply everything they’ve learned at CalArts in the next chapter of their lives: “Take risks, be bold. Don’t work from fear, and your heart and your gut really are your North Stars. They will be your compass in everything. And guys, get weird!”

Prior to the students receiving their degrees, Rajan and Art Dean Steven Lam presented a special tribute of the life and work of the late Emily King (Art BFA 2025). King, aka Menghan Zhuang, age 23 was an international student from China who was murdered in her Newhall apartment on Feb. 4. Jack Minh Terry, 22, was arrested in Garden Grove on Feb. 16 and charged on Feb. 19 with Zhuang’s murder. He is currently awating trial.

“Emily’s love of art and insistence that creativity, to quote her thesis show, should be a happy celebration, will keep us smiling, curious, and enchanted,” said Lam. “Emily understood how fleeting and precious life was, and therefore located how the aesthetic can allow all of us to make sense of the world through play and creation. Emily’s everythingness and her robust love of culture played out not just in her artwork, but in the classes she took.”

Lam also thanked Emily’s fellow students for helping to mount her thesis exhibition and the community at large for honoring her memory. As King had already exceeded the requisite units to earn her BFA before her death in February, Lam presented her sister Melody with a posthumous degree on her behalf.

The conferral of the degrees then began. In accordance with CalArts tradition, graduates selected audio snippets to play as they walked across the stage.

The party continued into the evening as graduates and guests headed to the Main Gallery for a celebration reception, featuring performances by the African Music and Dance Ensemble and the CalArts Salsa Band, directed by School of Music faculty Joey de Leon.

To view the livestream video of the 2025 CalArts graduation visit: https://calarts.edu/graduation-livestream.

Scenes from 2025 CalArts Graduation

All photos by Rafael Hernandez

Dolores Huerta

A few CalArts graduates pose for a photo.

Cal Arts African Music and Dance Ensemble