On the evening of June 17, 2025, LAU launched the opening of the university’s 100th Commencement Exercises, held in honor of the 903 graduates who earned their degrees on the Byblos campus.

Setting a festive tone for the event, a musical performance by talented students from the LAU Music Club filled the campus with lively beats as parents and attendees arrived on campus. The graduates filed in for what was to be a momentous culmination to myriad challenges, waving to their families, their faces suffused with pride and joy.

Standing before an audience of families, faculty, and friends, LAU President Chaouki T. Abdallah delivered an inspirational address that honored the university’s legacy and called on the class of 2025 to lead with empathy, integrity, and purpose.

Dr. Abdallah urged them to embrace AI with a human-centered mindset, uphold justice, seek understanding, and carry forward the hope of their families and country. True character is revealed in times of crisis, he added, exhorting the graduates to serve with humility, act as agents of change, and never yield in the face of adversity.

“Like the lighthouse that guides ships through dark waters, LAU and universities across Lebanon have become the communities that raised, supported and educated generations of young women and men,” he said, “You are now the ships of hope: for your parents, and for your country.”

True leadership was not a position to hold, but a duty to uphold, added Dr. Abdallah, “measured not by power but by service—by your ability to elevate others and inspire collective progress.”

This message of purposeful action was echoed by keynote speaker and Minister of Telecommunications Charles Hage, who reminded students that technology alone would not define their impact.

“Genuine transformation begins with human connections, empathy, compassion, and authentic leadership,” he said. He encouraged graduates to let their Lebanese identity, one of resilience and unity, “inspire and guide your actions, building bridges wherever you go.”

“Your education at LAU has prepared you not only academically but personally,” he added. “Companies worldwide will seek you out, not just for your academic prowess but for your integrity, compassion, and strong family values.”

Campus valedictorian Andrea Al Bejjani, a high distinction international business graduate, gave voice to the shared experience of her peers in the past year.

Her words captured a class determined to rise above the adversity that had shaped it. “We did not just survive,” she said, “we thrived,” and through it all, “LAU was our shelter, a place where for a few hours a day we could connect, grow and breathe.”

As they go out into the world, it is their turn not simply to succeed, but to inspire, lead, and make “future generations of LAU students proud to follow in our footsteps.”

In that spirit of excellence and service, the evening honored outstanding academic and extracurricular achievements.

Valedictorian Andrea Al Bejjani, Jad Ahmad Khazem, Marc Nassib Boustany, Marie Therese Jean Assaf, Reem Hamad Shehayib, Larissa Michel Faddoul, and Maria Boutros Abou Nader received the President’s Award for their outstanding academic excellence.

Raymond Joseph Charbel Raphael, Chadi Rami Boulos, Lynn George Nasr, Anthony Elias Rizk, Aya Abed Al Hadi Al Baghdadi, and Abdo Michel El Hayek each received the Torch Award in recognition of their leadership and positive impact.

For exemplifying courage, resilience, and a lasting influence on those around him, Abdo Michel El Hayek was also honored with the Sara El Khatib Inspiration Award.

In recognition of her academic merit and service to others, Vana Hovig Mekhsi Jerjian received the Rhoda Orme Award.

George Amin Abdallah was awarded the Riyad Nassar Leadership Award for his demonstrated ability to lead with integrity and purpose, while Caren Emile Youssef earned the Charbel Khairallah Endowed Award of Excellence in Engineering, presented in memory of the late engineering student Charbel Khairallah.

The ceremony ended on a high note with a dazzling fireworks display that lit up the Byblos sky, capturing the pride and joy of graduates, families, and friends alike.