Lubbock Christian University (LCU) held its spring commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 6, in the Rip Griffin Center, recognizing both undergraduate and graduate students who had completed the necessary requirements for their degrees.
Graduating students represented the B. Ward Lane College of Professional Studies, the School of Business, the J.E. & Eileen Hancock College of Liberal Arts, the School of Education and the Alfred and Patricia Smith College of Biblical Studies.
The student speaker, an honor given to one senior of each graduating class, was international student Clement Catteau, a Business Major from Halluin, France. After being introduced by LCU’s CEO in Residence Matt Bumstead, he shared how his love for America, West Texas, and particularly LCU, grew throughout his time here as a part of LCU’s golf program and the School of Business.
Dave Marcinkowski, Founder and Partner of Madera Residential, was the keynote speaker for the ceremony. Marcinkowski is driven by values that he and the other founding partners of Madera Residential live by everyday: Christ, community, and constant and never-ending improvement, according to the Madera website.
Born and raised in Detroit, MI, Marcinkowski’s education and expertise are blatantly visible in his understanding of economics, accounting, business, project management, property operations, and technology. He graduated with a liberal arts degree with a concentration in accounting from Albion college in 1992, and his multifamily industry career began that same year (Edward Rose & Sons), giving him more than 30 years of experience and relationships to draw upon.
With his partners, their visionary leadership has grown Madera Residential from one property in Baytown, TX to owning and managing roughly 80 properties (19,000 units) across the state. In 2021 alone, Madera Residential acquired nearly $1 billion worth of assets across Texas.
In true entrepreneurial spirit, Marcinkowski and Madera Residential leadership have branched out into other industries and ventures, like property technology (Quext), financial technology (Viva First), title insurance (Select Title), and fee-managed properties (Rockwood). Marcinkowski’s belief is quite simple—do the right thing and treat people the right way, and success and profitability will follow.
Marcinkowski shared with graduates, their friends, and their families about the plentiful opportunities open to them as they move out into the world to pursue their careers—not only technologically, but socially, vocationally, and spiritually as well. He pointed the class to numerous statistics and advances in medicine, computing technology, travel, social trends, and other advancements that he emphasized make today the best time in history in which to live.
Later in the commencement ceremony, two full-time LCU faculty members were recognized for their outstanding contributions to teaching during the 2022-23 school year. Dr. Jeremy Hegi, Assistant Professor of the History of Christianity, and Dr. Kregg Fehr, Professor of History and History Program Coordinator, received the L.R. Wilson Teaching Award toward the end of the ceremony. Faculty members nominate colleagues for the award and the recipients are determined by the faculty senate, based on set criteria.