Trinity University Commencement Graduates 587

The Trinity University Class of 2026 has been here before, in the signature squeaking red seats of Laurie Auditorium, its sweeping modernist ceiling spread out like a sheltering wing. It was for convocation during their first semester, in August 2022. They stood wide-eyed with uncertain smiles and one by one they signed the honor code, wondering what the next four years would bring. 

Blink, and here they are again, four years later, degree candidates in Trinity’s 2026 Commencement. For the last time, they gather together under the giant wing, along with more than 1,000 loved ones. Backstage, university organist and music professor David Heller D.M.A., plays the organ like Wemby plays defense, pushing J.S. Bach’s centuries-old notes, bright and deep, into every crevice. There’s still uncertainty among the students, but this time they’re ready to slip beneath the wing and take flight. 

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On Saturday, Trinity celebrated 587 graduates in two ceremonies. At 9 a.m., Trinity graduated:

• 31 Master of Science in Accounting students and
• 344 Bachelor of Science students.

In two reverent moments, the university remembered two students who died in the past year. Aidan Heartfield ‘26, who was a marketing major, died in the Central Texas flood in July 2025. Braxton Barry ‘25 M‘26 who received a bachelor’s degree in accounting in 2025 and was scheduled to receive a master’s in accounting this year, died suddenly of a medical emergency in January 2026. When their names were called, their fathers crossed the stage and accepted their diplomas. 

At 3 p.m., the university graduated:

• 182 Bachelor of Arts students,
• 3 Bachelor of Music students,
• 6 Master of Arts in School Psychology students,
• 10 Master of Education in School Leadership students, and

• 11 Master of Arts in Teaching.

   

Trinity University President Vanessa B. Beasley, Ph.D., Omar Ratrut ‘26, president of the Student Government Association, and Ted Beneski P’11 P’14, chair of the Board of Trustees, shared thoughts, words of wisdom, and a few humorous comments. 

President Beasley

Beasley, who started her term as president when the Class of 2026 began as students, considers herself a senior, too. “After today,” she said, “I’ll be a fifth-year senior.” She shared three lessons that she’s learned since her first year:

• Learning requires leaders to be accountable,
• Listening does not equal agreeing; in fact, listening might be more important than agreeing, and 
• Leave a place better than you found it.

In closing, Beasley said to the graduates, “You have learned and you have learned how to facilitate learning in others with accountability and psychological safety. You have learned how to listen with intent and empathy, and how to process what you hear, what you absorb in the world critically, and that listening does not mean agreeing. And you have left us better than you found us. 

“Thank you for that. Thank you for entrusting us with four years of your life, for letting us be your partners in intellectual and interpersonal growth. Just as the Trinity University faculty and staff have worked diligently to instruct and support you, you have enriched our lives, just by being you and learning here.”

Omar Ratrut ‘26 

Ratrut majored in political science and minored in sociology and philosophy. He plans to attend law school. He offered encouragement and inspiration to his classmates, telling them, in part, “Trinity has taught me many valuable lessons, yet the one that resonates most is the value each of us has held in shaping, defining, and contributing to our shared community. I urge you to remember this lesson if you ever feel you are walking the wrong path, unsure of your values or contributions, or find yourself questioning your unequivocal worth.

While our campus may be small in size, "it is large in the sense of purpose, dedication, and excellence that it has poured into each of us. Graduates, there is never a right time to leave a place you’ve called home, but I can assure you, you are all prepared, equipped, and ready for what’s to come.

“Finally, I urge you to leave your mark in every space you are soon to assume, knowing that this little place and the communities you’ve forged within it will always be cheering you on, waiting patiently for your return. Graduates, we are eager to see the people you will all soon become.”

Ted Beneski, chair of the Board of Trustees

Beneski, a two-time Trinity parent, the CEO and managing partner of Insight Equity Holdings, began with humor. 

“Yes, my name is Ted,” he said. “You’re about to receive a talk. It’s a genuine Ted talk.” 

He followed with sincerity. “Everyone on this stage cares about your wellbeing and success.”

Trinity graduates have a number of reasons to feel optimistic about their futures, Beneski said. 

“While there will be challenges and obstacles in your forward path, I’m here to remind all of you that your future has the potential to be unimaginably bright,” Beneski said. 

Trinity’s increasing academic excellence as a liberal arts and science university is growing the school’s popularity across the country. The return on a Trinity education is high, and the outlook is positive, Beneski said. 

“My hope for all of you is that after all the progress we have made as a world and as a nation here in the USA, that it instills in you a sense of appreciation and gratitude to those that have come before you. Feelings of gratefulness, according to psychologists, make it impossible to feel unhappy at the same time,” Beneski said. 

After the speeches, after the graduates walked the stage, Chaplain Alex Serna-Wallender ‘08 M’09 closed with a joyful prayer of good wishes. 

The newest alumni processed from the auditorium and through the “tunnel of celebration,” an arbor of live oaks, showered by applause and cheers of their former professors. They walked, some hand-in-hand, everyone smiling, to the Magic Stones sculptures, and into the San Antonio sun. 

Throughout our days and all our lives,

our hearts will cherish thee:

Alma Mater, Alma Mater,

All Hail to Trinity.