Mount senior who died after skateboarding accident honored at graduation

Of the hundreds of degrees conferred at the commencement for Mount St. Mary’s University’s class of 2024 on Saturday, one stood out to nearly everyone in the room.

An honorary degree was accepted by Paul Jaravata on behalf of his son, Paul “Keagan” Jaravata, a senior at the Mount who died following an off-campus skateboarding accident last fall.

As Paul Jaravata walked across the stage at the Knott Arena to accept his son’s degree, the rest of the graduating class loudly chanted his son’s name. Some pinned purple ribbons to their gowns in Keagan’s honor.

In an interview after the ceremony, Paul Jaravata said his son had been working toward a Bachelor of Science in psychology and eventually hoped to attend medical school.

For his senior capstone, Keagan was researching the relationship between music and an individual’s perception of visual art, his father said. Gracie Hillman, a fellow psychology major and friend of Keagan’s, completed the project after Keagan’s death in September 2023.

“I tried not to focus on the tears of sorrow, but instead be happy at what he brought to this community and his friends,” Paul Jaravata said. “I’m deeply grateful to the university for how this honored his studies and hard work.”

The Mount’s class of 2024 is among the largest in the school’s history, with 474 undergraduate students, 203 graduate students and 33 seminary students, according to communications director Donna Klinger.

Mount St. Mary's Graduation

Sunlight shines on graduates during the ceremony.

The student speaker for the class was Darrien Coates, the recipient of the 2024 Edward J. Flanagan Memorial Prize. The award is given to the one senior in each graduating class who best represents the spirit of the university.

Coates, who majored in neuroscience and minored in psychology and biology, competed with the Division I track and field team during his time at the Mount. He also co-founded the university’s Students of Color in STEM club.

In his speech, Coates acknowledged that the commencement would be the first graduation ceremony experienced by most undergraduate students in the class of 2024, the majority of whom graduated high school at the height of the pandemic.

“Four years ago, we were knocked down in one of the worst ways possible,” Coates said. “And since then, we’ve done nothing but get back up.”

Coates, who will soon begin a post-baccalaureate researcher position at the National Institutes of Health in North Carolina, closed his speech with his favorite Bible verse, Jeremiah 29:11.

“For I know the plans I have for you — plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future,” Coates recited. “So here’s to the future — go be great guys!,” Coates added.

Timothy Trainor, the outgoing president of Mount St. Mary’s who has held the position since 2016, delivered the commencement speech for the class of 2024.

Mount St. Mary's Graduation

Timothy Trainor, the outgoing president of Mount St. Mary’s University, gives the commencement address during the university's commencement ceremony on Saturday.

Because Trainor could not recall the commencement speech at his own college graduation, he said, he chose to keep his remarks short and sweet.

In his speech, Trainor implored the graduates to “work hard,” “call home,” and “don’t be an Eeyore,” referring to the melancholic character from Winnie the Pooh.

The commencement ceremony for the class of 2024 was momentous not just for the graduates themselves, but for the friends and family who traveled from near and far to show their support.

Graduates Justyn Seivright and his partner Sarah Pernell met as undergraduate students at the Mount. Just weeks after the couple finished their master’s degrees in business administration in December, Pernell gave birth to the couple’s baby boy, Jakai Seivright.

Mount St. Mary's Graduation

Justyn Seivright holds his son Jakai Seivright, 3 mo., following the commencement ceremony at Mount St. Mary’s University on Saturday.

Seivright said the commencement ceremony was the first time his 3-month-old son had been around so many people at one time.

“I appreciate the journey, and it feels great that we get to have our son watch his parents walk across the stage,” Seivright said.

José Taveras, a first-generation college graduate, earned a bachelor’s in political science and plans to start working toward his master’s in global affairs at New York University this fall.

More than a dozen members of Taveras’ family flew in from Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, New York, New Jersey and North Carolina to celebrate his achievement. Taveras is originally from Weehawken, New Jersey.

“It feels like I’m paving the way for the rest of my family,” Taveras said. “My mother didn’t get to finish college, so I’m glad I get to carry the mantle for her.”

Taveras’ mother Andrea Paulino said she was just 16 credits away from earning her degree at Rutgers University when she left college to focus on being a single parent to her son.

Paulino said that watching Taveras, her only child, receive his degree on Saturday proved that her sacrifice was worth it.

Now that Taveras has officially graduated from the Mount, he has begun encouraging his mother to finish her own education.

“Anything is possible,” Paulino said with a smile.