Valedictorian Thankful for Academic, Athletic Experiences

Valedictorian Brianna Reim ’25 addressed her classmates at Neumann’s graduation ceremony on May 18, reminding her fellow graduates about their shared academic and athletic experiences.

“We were able to see how unique and intentional the professors are here at Neumann,” she said. “They took the time to know us, support us, and push us to be the best students and people we can be. And because of that, we all get to be just a little wiser and kinder as we move forward in life.”

Looking back on the last four years, she admitted, “I can’t imagine going anywhere else.”

Crediting small classes and caring faculty, she told the crowd, “I feel most people in this room would argue that it doesn’t get much better than Neumann.”

She also expressed gratitude for her athletic experience as a member of the softball team. In fact, Reim was on the team bus, coming back to campus from an away game in early April, when she got the call that put her on the graduation stage. Dr. Katie Barnes, the university’s interim provost, broke the good news that Reim was the class of 2025 valedictorian.

“Oh, my goodness. Guess what?” Reim whispered to a teammate. Word spread quickly, and the bus erupted in cheers.

Describing her teammates as her “family away from home,” she credited them for years of friendship and support.

“They taught me how to persevere in the face of adversity, how to lead with empathy when helping people in their struggles and about celebrating each other in our successes. And that is exactly what they did for me,” she told the crowd of more than 2,000 who filled the Mirenda Center.

She concluded her remarks by urging classmates to “seize every opportunity, embrace every challenge, and cherish every moment” in the future.

A graduate of Perkiomen Valley High School, Reim earned the valedictorian honor by compiling a 4.0 GPA as an elementary and special education major during four years on campus.

Dariana Troilo ’23 ’25, who received a master’s degree in athletic training, was the student speaker at the graduate commencement ceremony.

Neumann University awarded 361 undergraduate and graduate degrees in 2025: two associate’s degrees, 229 bachelor’s degrees, 86 master’s degrees, and 44 doctoral degrees.

John (Jack) Lynch III and Monsignor Federico Britto ’05 received Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degrees for their decades-long leadership and community service.

Since 2005, Lynch has served as president and CEO of Main Line Health, suburban Philadelphia's comprehensive health care system, which includes four of the region's respected acute care hospitals: Lankenau Medical Center, Bryn Mawr Hospital, Paoli Hospital and Riddle Hospital.

Lynch also serves on the boards of the United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey, The Haverford School, the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Board of Overseers, and The American Heart Association.

Monsignor Britto serves as the founding pastor of St. Cyprian Catholic Church in Philadelphia, a position he has held since 2000. He is also parochial administrator of St. Ignatius of Loyola Catholic Church and regional dean for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.

Since his ordination in 1982, he has served on the planning committee for the Beatification and Canonization of Mother Katharine Drexel, been a board member for the National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus and worked with interfaith organizations like the National Conference for Christians and Jews.

Social Work Major Graduates at 19

In May of 2023, Sarah Potter walked across a stage at Cecil College to accept her associate degree. A month later, she graduated from high school.

Potter can still hear her now deceased mother’s voice, bragging about this odd sequence of events: “My daughter graduated from college before she finished high school.”

Two years later, now 19, Potter graduated with a bachelor's degree in social work. No one younger than 19 has ever earned a Neumann University degree.

During her years at Oxford Area High School, she was taking college courses, which counted towards both her high school diploma and her associate degree at the community college in Maryland. When she took English 101 at Cecil College, for instance, it counted for her junior English class at Oxford.

Potter admits that the path was difficult.

“It really challenged me in ways that I didn’t know I could be challenged. It was a scary decision, but I’ve always been motivated to do my best in school and show my talent.”

Adding to her motivation was the knowledge that she would be paying for college on her own. Neumann helped by accepting all her Cecil College credits and providing some significant financial assistance.

Even with that support, Potter maintained a non-stop schedule in her last year. She worked Friday through Sunday from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Wawa in Aston, had an internship on Monday and Wednesday in the adoption unit of Delaware County Children Youth Services, and took classes on Tuesday and Thursday.

Potter has no complaints, though. She has been working since she was 14.

In September, she has a job waiting for her at DCCYS. Her long-term plans include earning a master’s degree and getting her social work licensure.

Dr. Chris Domes gave some graduates a lift in his golf cart.

Davay and Da’Veigh Washington graduated with degrees in business administration thanks, in part, to the dedication of their father, Shellman Washington, who drove the twins to campus and home again in his 2003 Chevy Impala — for four years.