CCE Student Recognition Ceremony
The Center for Community Engagement closed out the 2025-26 academic year with its annual Student Recognition Ceremony, a joyful gathering honoring the dedication, leadership and heart of the student employees who support the CCE’s work. The event brought together students, staff and campus leaders to reflect on a year shaped by a shared commitment to strengthening community across Spokane.
Julia Larson, CCE Office Manager and lead event planner for the Student Recognition Ceremony, emphasized why recognizing student contributions is essential to the CCE’s mission. “Without them we could not provide the support we do within our community,” she shared. She highlighted how students embody Gonzaga’s values through the consistent moments that build trust and connection with community partners. “The ways each of them has served our community and one another, embodies Gonzaga’s mission of working in and with communities through service, leadership, advocacy and the promotion of justice.”
The 32 2026 graduating seniors
Campus leaders, including Interim Provost Mia Bertagnolli, Fr. Gilbert Sunghera, Vice Provost Dr. Kent Porterfield and Dean Joan Iva Fawcett, attended to celebrate the students’ impact and the relationships they built throughout the year. Their presence underscored the significance of the work students do, not only for the CCE, but for the broader Gonzaga and Northeast Spokane communities.
A central moment of the ceremony was Senior Missioning, a tradition honoring graduating seniors as they transition into the next chapter of their lives. With a record 32 CCE seniors graduating this year, the moment carried special meaning. This year’s missioning speech was delivered by Bella Realmuto, whose reflection captured the heart of what it means to serve through accompaniment.
Bella shared how her time in the CCE transformed her understanding of social change. What began as a simple job became a deeply formative experience rooted in Ignatian spirituality. She spoke about learning the meaning of accompaniment, not as a grand gesture, but as the quiet act of sitting with someone, listening and receiving their story. Through immersion trips, neighborhood meetings and everyday interactions, she discovered that “engagement isn’t defined by grandeur, but rather by the ripples that turn stillness into waves of change.”
Julia Larsen (right), CCE Office Manager, and Kate Gage ('26) pictured
Her speech painted a vivid picture of the CCE — glitter, laughter, pipe-cleaner flowers and the beautiful chaos that makes it feel like home. She reflected on how Spokane shifted from “a random city in Eastern Washington into a place I can safely call my second home,” and how the Logan neighborhood became a community of “uniquely beautiful individuals.” Her words reminded everyone that the heart of the CCE lies in a willingness to accompany others.
For the fall 2026 academic semester, the CCE welcomed about 60 new and returning student employees. The Student Welcome Dinner held on August 31st marked the beginning of a new year together and provided an opportunity to reconnect, meet new team members, share a meal and ground the team in a shared mission and values for the year ahead.