Class Day 2022 Details

Statement Regarding COVID-19 Monitoring

The health and well-being of our community is our greatest concern as we monitor the COVID-19 pandemic. Dartmouth has established a high-level task force to synthesize the latest information, consult with experts, analyze risk, and prepare for various scenarios. As we prepare for Geisel’s Class Day and Dartmouth College's Commencement, we will regularly update the website with the latest information coming from the task force and experts.

Monitor Dartmouth's COVID-19 Information Website to get up-to-date information.

2022 Class Day & Commencement Weekend

Class Day Ceremony

Saturday, May 28
9:00 AM – Class Day Event
Tent on Class of '78 Life Sciences Center Lawn

Keynote Speaker: Andrea Hayes, MD, FACS, FAAP

Keynote Speaker: Andrea Hayes, MD, FACS, FAAP

Dr. Andrea Hayes FACS is the Chairwoman of Surgery and the Schneider Endowed Professor, at Howard University School of Medicine. She is also the Associate Director of the Cancer Center at Howard. Dr. Hayes has a basic science laboratory that focuses on rare sarcomas and she also maintains clinical research efforts. She specializes in refractory and resistant tumors and children and specifically soft tissue sarcomas and children. Her patients request her services from around the world because she was the first to do hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy and cytoreductive surgery in a child.  She was previously the section chief of pediatric surgery at UT MD Anderson Cancer Center and the Surgeon in Chief of the University of North Carolina Children’s hospital as well as division chief.

Dr. Hayes was born in Los Angeles California and moved to Dartmouth College to pursue her secondary education. She continued at Dartmouth medical school. She then moved back to California to complete her residency program at the University of California Davis East Bay, under the tutelage of Dr. Claude Organ Jr. MD.  She completed a molecular biology fellowship at the University of California San Francisco under the direction of Drs. Michael German and Douglas Hanahan. She then went on to complete a pediatric surgical oncology fellowship at the St. Jude's children's Research Hospital in Memphis Tennessee. Dr. Hayes continued her academic proceeds by completing a pediatric surgery fellowship at the acclaimed Toronto Hospital for Sick Children.  She also completed a special fellowship in melanoma and sarcoma at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.

After she was recruited back to M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, she began her academic pursuits after being awarded a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation as a Harold Amos Scholar. This allowed her to fund her research and Ewing's sarcoma lung metastasis and angiogenesis. She developed the first orthotopic xenograft model of metastatic Ewing's sarcoma. She simultaneously conducted clinical research and completed the first cytoreductive surgery and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy HIPEC, for children with sarcomatosis.  She completed a phase I trial and established the safe dose of chemotherapy to be delivered in HIPEC.

She has continued to impact the field of sarcoma and sarcomatosis by amassing the largest number of desmoplastic small round cell tumor DSRCT, patients at any one hospital and by anyone surgeon. DSRCT is a rare disease for which she has improved survival from 30% to 60% based on the complete removal of 100s of intra-abdominal tumor implants and HIPEC.  She continues to receive philanthropic funding for her unique research.

Dr. Hayes-Jordan has served on the executive committee of the children's oncology group sarcoma community for the past 10 years this position is shared by only 2 other pediatric surgeons in the country. She has earned membership in the American Surgical Association and has served as chair of the cancer committee for the American Pediatric Surgical Association. She has also been selected for the pediatric disease query PDQ, a national committee that vets every publication on pediatric cancer and summarizes it on the National Institute of Health website. She has also served as the past president for the Society of Black Academic Surgeons and is a Regent of the American College of Surgeons.  Dr. Hayes was appointed by president trump to the National Cancer Advisory Board. The National Cancer Advisory Board reports to the director of the National Cancer Institute and the secretary of health.

Dr. Hayes has published over 160 manuscripts and dozens of book chapters. She plans to continue her scientific research in a translational laboratory at Howard University.  Dr. Hayes truly enjoys mentoring faculty and residents and cherishes that activity.

Dr. Hayes is the first African American female pediatric surgeon in the United States of America. She is nationally and internationally known for her work pioneering the HIPEC operation for children. She has been featured in her local TV and printed news on many occasions including being recognized in the 'Houston Woman's magazine.  She continues to be active and involved in mentorship for young surgeons interested in an academic career.  She has one daughter, Jenelle (27), and one son, Jonah (26). She enjoys participating in church activities such as medical mission trips and supporting her United Methodist Church orphanage in Kenya.

Location:  Under a tent on the lawn between Life Science Center, Remsen, and Anonymous Hall (RAIN OR SHINE) As we track the weather if there becomes a threat of severe weather (extremely high winds, lightning, or anything life-threatening) a SEVERE weather call will be made.  A severe weather call means our ceremony will transition to a remote format. All students, families, and guests will watch the ceremony in their own area of lodging.

We provide a live stream of the ceremony for family & friends to view.  A link will be provided as we get closer to the date.

Regalia:   Tina Hoisington will be communicating details on ordering regalia after January 1, 2022.

If you plan on attending Commencement on June 12th.

Please make sure to review the Dartmouth Commencement website for logistics and information for attending graduation events on campus.

If you have any questions, please contact Tina Hoisington at (603) 650-1509 (office) or via email at: Geisel.Class.Day@Dartmouth.edu.

Important Dates

Friday, May 27
5:00 PM – Student and Faculty Awards Ceremony

Oopik Auditorium, Class of '78 Life Sciences Center

Saturday, May 28
9:00 AM – Class Day Event
Tent on Class of '78 Life Sciences Center Lawn
Reception immediately following

Sunday, June 12
Dartmouth College Commencement Ceremony

Degrees will be conferred on Class Day, 5/28, and diplomas will be available for pick up after the Class Day ceremony. Diplomas will be mailed the week of 5/30 to students who do not attend Class Day.