Mary Cunningham Boyce, a distinguished expert in mechanical engineering, will deliver the keynote address during the Graduate School’s annual Commencement Ceremony on May 16 at the University of Notre Dame.
The ceremony will take place at 9 a.m. inside Notre Dame Stadium. University President Rev. Robert A. Dowd, C.S.C., will confer the master’s and doctoral degrees and deliver the charge to the graduates, in addition to the benediction.
“We are honored to have such an outstanding scholar and academic leader to help us send our graduates out into the world to do good,” said Michael Hildreth, dean of the Graduate School and vice president and associate provost of graduate studies. “Her rich and diverse experience will provide a distinct source of advice for them as they seek to flourish in their future careers.”
A champion of interdisciplinary scholarship to confront global challenges through basic research and real-world implementation, Boyce is provost emerita and professor of mechanical engineering at Columbia University. She joined the faculty at Columbia in 2013, serving as dean of the Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science. She was appointed provost in 2021 and oversaw the return to campus following the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to her tenure at Columbia, Boyce was a faculty member at MIT for 25 years.
“In honoring Mary Boyce, we celebrate a leader who pairs world-class scholarship in the mechanics of materials with the talents of an extraordinary administrator,” said Patricia J. Culligan, the Matthew H. McCloskey Dean of Engineering. “She has shown us that engineering is not just about solving technical puzzles; it’s about seeking the best way to serve humanity.”
A leading researcher of polymeric materials and soft composites, her groundbreaking contributions include creating new modeling methods for use in commercial products, transportation vehicles and biomedical devices, among others. Boyce’s contributions to the field led to her election as a fellow of the American Academy of Mechanics, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and her election to the National Academy of Engineering. She is the recipient of numerous honors, including the 2024 Benjamin Franklin Medal in Mechanical Engineering, the 2020 Timoshenko Medal and the 2015 Engineering Science Medal.
“These students have elected to deepen and broaden their knowledge during a time of rapid advancement and change. I hope that sharing some of my own journey will help students embrace opportunities along their own paths to bring their talents to benefit society.”
In addition to delivering the Graduate School commencement address, Boyce will receive an honorary doctor of engineering degree during the 181st University Commencement Ceremony on May 17.
“I am honored to receive this recognition from Notre Dame and for the opportunity to address the graduates at the Graduate School Commencement Ceremony as they cross this important milestone,” Boyce said. “These students have elected to deepen and broaden their knowledge during a time of rapid advancement and change. I hope that sharing some of my own journey will help students embrace opportunities along their own paths to bring their talents to benefit society.”
The following alumni, faculty and student award winners will also be recognized during the Graduate School ceremony:
Distinguished Graduate Alumni Award: Marlene L. Daut (’09 Ph.D.), professor of French and Black studies at Yale University
Rev. James A. Burns, C.S.C., Award: Xiaobo Sharon Hu, the Leo E. and Patti Ruth Linbeck Professor of Engineering in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at Notre Dame
Rev. James A. Burns, C.S.C., Award: Patrick Wensing, the Wanzek Family Foundation Collegiate Professor of Engineering in the Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering at Notre Dame
Dick and Peggy Notebaert Award: Jason C. Hicks, professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering and associate dean for graduate and postdoctoral affairs in the College of Engineering at Notre Dame
Eli J. and Helen Shaheen Award in Engineering: Hannah Rose Spero, doctoral candidate in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences
Eli J. and Helen Shaheen Award in Humanities: Benjamin J. Young, doctoral candidate in the Department of History
Eli J. and Helen Shaheen Award in Science: Dailin Gan, doctoral candidate in the Department of Applied and Computational Mathematics and Statistics
Eli J. and Helen Shaheen Award in Social Sciences: Hannah Early Bagdanov, doctoral candidate in the Department of Political Science
Social Justice Award: Emma M. Thrift-Cahall, doctoral candidate in the Department of Biological Sciences
Originally published at news.nd.edu on April 24, 2026 by Erin Blasko.