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Chef, chocolatier, and Hamilton alumnus Stephen Durfee ’85 urged the Class of 2026 to be present and patient enough to find what they love during the College’s Commencement ceremony on Sunday, May 24, in the Margaret Bundy Scott Field House, where 510 bachelor of arts degrees were awarded.

Chef and chocolatier Stephen Durfee, director of curriculum at Dandelion Chocolate in San Francisco, and a 1985 graduate of Hamilton College, will deliver Hamilton’s 2026 Commencement address and receive an honorary degree on Sunday, May 24, at 10:30 a.m., in the Margaret Bundy Scott Field House. A class of 507 students is expected to receive bachelor’s degrees during the Commencement ceremony.

Pastry chef Stephen Durfee ’85 took dessert to the next level — and the next size — with the world’s largest s’more. The behemoth treat measured 49 square feet and weighed in at 396 pounds.

As professor and co-chair in the Department of Molecular & Cell Biology at the University of California at Berkeley, Rebecca Heald ’85 works to empower basic research and pave the way for those underrepresented in scientific fields.

Mona Campbell ’85 spent much of her childhood “clomping through the forest for fun” on her family’s farm. Now, she shares that important part of her with thousands of others while working to preserve it for generations to come.

The annual Hamilton Pitch Competition, which is open to Hamilton students and graduates of the last decade, is an involved process from September through April. Eight start-ups participated this year, attending conferences on the ins and outs of entrepreneurship hosted by a variety of alumni.

As a journalist, Greg Thomas ’85 keeps busy. Last summer he published a thought-provoking piece in Areo magazine, “Why I Am a Radical Moderate,” and he’s also active in a range of arts and culture work.

When Americans gather in Lower Manhattan and Shanksville, Pa., to mark the 20th anniversary of 9/11, the work of two Hamiltonians will help them remember that tragic day.

The College’s Board of Trustees nominated and elected four candidates to serve as charter trustees. Mason P. Ashe ’85, Manal Ataya ’01, Peter B. Coffin ’81, P’14, and Sharon D. Madison ’84 joined the board on Oct. 2.

The warm welcome began with a librarian’s flash of inspiration and some deadline grant-writing. She would create a picture book collection that would tell stories about newly arrived residents of the U.S. to travel from library to library.