{"id":16386,"date":"2026-05-01T11:22:01","date_gmt":"2026-05-01T15:22:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/?p=16386"},"modified":"2026-05-01T11:22:02","modified_gmt":"2026-05-01T15:22:02","slug":"md-sen-mccray-to-speak-at-umes-spring-commencement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/for-the-media\/md-sen-mccray-to-speak-at-umes-spring-commencement\/","title":{"rendered":"Md. Sen. McCray to speak at UMES Spring Commencement"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"Maryland
Maryland Senator Cory McCray<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The Honorable Cory McCray of the Maryland State Senate will address the University of Maryland Eastern Shore\u2019s 2026 graduating class during the spring commencement ceremony on May 15 at 10 a.m. in the university\u2019s William P. Hytche Athletic Center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe UMES community is honored to have the Honorable Cory McCray as commencement speaker for our graduates entering the world,\u201d said UMES President Heidi M. Anderson. \u201cHe is proof that hard work, perseverance, and education pay off. Sen. McCray is a great example as he continues to advocate for the future of our youth.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. McCray \u2014 representing District 45 and the former acting chair of the Maryland Democratic Party \u2014 is no stranger to HBCUs such as UMES. He, along with his wife Demetria, established a scholarship fund for aspiring educators at Baltimore\u2019s Coppin State University.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a young man growing up in Baltimore, the senator, who is completing his second term, credits education through apprenticeship as the foundation of his career as a professional electrician. He went on to earn an Associate of Science Degree from Baltimore City Community College and a Bachelor of Arts degree from National College.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those early experiences are what he says continues to shape his commitment to workforce development, education and economic mobility for constituents in his district and across the state of Maryland.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Apprenticeship That Saved My Life,\u201d<\/em> authored by Sen. McCray, is described as a guidebook and call to action that highlights apprenticeship as a powerful pathway to success. In it, he demonstrates the possibilities of access and opportunities for underserved young people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. McCray credits his wife and children for his commitment to building a better opportunity for the next generation. He was first elected to the General Assembly as a delegate in 2014.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Honorable Cory McCray of the Maryland State Senate will address the University of Maryland Eastern Shore\u2019s 2026 graduating class during the spring commencement ceremony on May 15 at 10 a.m. in the university\u2019s William P. Hytche Athletic Center. \u201cThe UMES community is honored to have the Honorable Cory McCray as commencement speaker for our…Read more Md. Sen. McCray to speak at UMES Spring Commencement<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2245,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","wds_primary_category":56,"footnotes":""},"categories":[56,19,18],"tags":[],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-16386","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-for-the-media","category-news-releases","category-sans-news-releases"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16386","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2245"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16386"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16386\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16386"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16386"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16386"},{"taxonomy":"post_folder","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_folder?post=16386"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}