AURORA, N.Y. — For college graduates, commencement is always a bitter sweet moment. But for Wells College graduates, it is even more so this year. 

"Very overwhelmed. This is a really exciting moment being that it’s the last graduation ever so it’s pretty awesome to be here," said Naijely Garcia, 2024 Graduate of Wells College. 

What You Need To Know

  • The 156th graduating class of Wells College graduated on Saturday and they will be the last class to graduate

  • Last month Wells College announced that it will be closing it's doors after the end of the spring semester

  • The only statement from Wells College Faculty was that Saturday was about the graduates

Last month, Wells College announced that it would be closing its doors at the end of the spring semester.

"I was very shocked, but I was also really just sad for my underclassmen friends because this effects them more than anybody," Garcia said.

Wells joins a number of colleges that have closed in 2024 as undergraduate college enrollment continues to decrease each year, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. 

"I would say it is declining because especially after the pandemic it’s just been really hard for all these schools to stay afloat," said Garcia. 

The only statement given by Wells College faculty was that Saturday was about the graduates.

"It definitely was made about the students. We had a lot of say in how our graduation was gonna go and I think it was well deserved for everybody to feel like they had a part in the graduation," Garcia said.

So graduates are trying to focus more on the sweet, than the bitter.

"I discovered who I was as a person and a woman and I’m very excited to continue my journey after wells," said Garcia.