2023 CSSW Graduation Ceremony
Congratulations, Class of 2023!
We are excited to celebrate all that you have accomplished during your time at the School of Social Work! The Columbia School of Social Work Graduation Ceremony will take place on Tuesday, May 16, 2023 at 10:00 a.m.
Date: Tuesday, May 16, 2023
Time: 10:00 AM
Graduate Arrival Time: 8:30 AM
Doors Open: 9:00 AM
Share your graduation experience on Twitter! Use the hashtag #CSSWGrad2023 and your tweet may appear at graduation.
Contents
- Quick Links
- CSSW Affinity Graduations

CSSW Graduation Information
Guest and Ticketing Information
Each student will receive four (4) guest tickets. There will also be an opportunity to request additional guest tickets (though, they are not guaranteed). We anticipate launching the registration and ticketing site in late March or early April.

CSSW 2022 Commencement Speaker
CSSW’s 2022 commencement speaker was Wanda Holland Greene, Vice Chair, The Trustees of Columbia University and Head of School at The Hamlin School in San Francisco. This year’s speaker will be announced.

Regalia
Regalia is NOT mandatory for the Columbia School of Social Work Graduation, but regalia is mandatory for University Commencement. More information about regalia can be found here.
Meet our 2022 Student Speakers
Yong Gun (YG) Lee, Doctoral Graduates

Yong Gun (YG) Lee is a PhD candidate studying contemporary approaches to health promotion among sexual and gender diverse people in global settings. While at CSSW, YG worked under the mentorship of Professor Elwin Wu as well as in collaboration with colleagues at the Social Intervention Group and the Global Health Research Center of Central Asia, conducting HIV prevention intervention research with sexual and gender diverse people in Kazakhstan. After CSSW, YG will continue research and training as the Postdoctoral Associate in Intersectionality & Sexual and Gender Minority Health at the Rutgers University School of Social Work.
Ashley Cole, Jr., Master’s Graduates

Ashley Cole, Jr., who’s better known as Ash, is a native of Far Rockaway, Queens, a graduate of Queens College, and now a graduate of Columbia University School of Social Work. Next fall, Ash will return as a first-year doctoral candidate at Columbia University School of Social Work. Ash is the Vice-President of the Association of Black Social Workers at Columbia University, a
Student Advisor for the Action Lab, a Research Assistant at the SafeLab, a Beyond the Bars Fellow Alumni, and the Lead Facilitator for Umoja Circles. He’s also a Co-Editor of the book entitled Unwritten: Stories from Behind and Beyond the Bars. He has moderated and co-moderated countless events throughout his tenure at CSSW. As a first-generation graduate student, he shares in many of the lived experiences of the people he serves. He’s an advocate for criminal justice reform, fathers who the child support enforcement unit has negatively impacted, and the mental health of young Black boys in academia. When he’s not working to break the bondage of systematic oppression, you can find him spending time with his family.