Shanda Purcell of St. Jerome Parish in Fancy Farm, Ky., smiles after receiving her diploma during Saint Meinrad’s commencement ceremony on May 9, 2026. COURTESY OF EMILY REISZ, SAINT MEINRAD

BY WKC STAFF

Graduates of Saint Meinrad Seminary and School of Theology, St. Meinrad, IN, were awarded master’s degrees at the commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 9, 2026. Angie Greulich, of Jasper, IN, Saint Meinrad alumna and charitable giving relationship manager for Catholic Relief Services, gave the address.

Three from the Diocese of Owensboro received master’s degrees this year: Hunter Dickens, Dcn. John Knight, and Shanda Purcell. Dickens is a seminarian for the Diocese of Owensboro; Dcn. Knight serves at Holy Name of Jesus Parish in Henderson, and Purcell is a parishioner of St. Jerome Parish in Fancy Farm.

Shanda Purcell and Dcn. John Knight, both of the Diocese of Owensboro, smile on May 9, 2026 while attending Saint Meinrad’s commencement ceremony celebrations. COURTESY OF EMILY REISZ, SAINT MEINRAD

The full list of those receiving Master of Arts (Catholic Philosophical Studies) degrees were:

Ryan Carlson and Ben Keating, Diocese of Little Rock, AR;

Hunter Dickens, Diocese of Owensboro, KY;

Michael Florin and Matthew Henry, Diocese of Fort Wayne–South Bend, IN;

Steven Kehoe and Sean Sullivan, Diocese of Springfield, IL;

Lucas LaRosa, Luke Roesener, and Todd Seiler, Archdiocese of Indianapolis, IN;

Hong Le, Thang Trinh, and Peter Trinh, Diocese of Thanh Hóa, Vietnam;

Brother Isaac Levering, OSB, and Brother George Meredith, OSB, Saint Meinrad Archabbey, IN.

The full list of those receiving Master of Arts (Theology) degrees were:

Stanley Amuchaka, Diocese of Fort Wayne–South Bend, IN;

Karen Guilford, Harrison, OH;

Joseph Hayden, Evansville, IN;

Christopher Hickman, Louisville, KY;

Glenn Hutchens, Nashville, TN;

David Johnson, Springfield, TN;

John Knight, Henderson, KY;

John Molitor, Milford, DE;

Kathleen Morley, Downers Grove, IL;

Moses Ndung’u, Glenmary Home Missioners, OH;

Aaron Noll, Bloomington, IN;

Robert Peters, Cape Girardeau, MO;

Shanda Purcell, Mayfield, KY;

Eugene Ritter, Weaverville, NC;

Edward Saer, Little Rock, AR;

Jacob Schneider, Diocese of Evansville, IN;

Robert Schulenburg, Cedar Rapids, IA;

Elizabeth Suaso, Rochester, MN;

Kathleen Weaver, Indianapolis, IN.

Fr. Corey D. Bruns (foreground), vocations director for the Diocese of Owensboro, takes a picture of Owensboro’s seminarians Tommy Rhodes, Hunter Dickens, Christopher French, and Wes Wheatley during Saint Meinrad’s May 9, 2026 commencement ceremony celebrations. Dickens received his master of arts in Catholic Philosophical Studies that day. COURTESY OF EMILY REISZ, SAINT MEINRAD