Former New England Patriots Star Matthew Slater To Deliver Commencement Speech at Providence College
Four Others to Receive Honorary Degrees
Sunday, May 17 – 11:00 a.m.
Amica Mutual Pavilion, Downtown Providence
March 18, 2026 – Providence, RI – Providence College (PC) announced today that former New England Patriot wide receiver and special teams ace Matthew Slater, will present the Commencement Address, and receive an honorary doctoral degree at the College’s 108th Commencement exercises. The ceremony will take place on Sunday, May 17 at 11:00 a.m. at the Amica Mutual Pavilion in Downtown Providence.
A three-time Super Bowl champion and esteemed humanitarian, Matthew Slater is universally regarded as one of the best special teams players in NFL history. Slater retired in 2023 after 16 seasons with the New England Patriots. The 10-time Pro Bowl selection and 13-year team captain also served for a year as a special assistant on the Patriots coaching staff upon his retirement.
Slater’s legacy of leadership extends to his commitment to changing lives and making communities stronger. Recognized numerous times by the Patriots, the NFL and other organizations for community service, Slater and his wife, Dr. Shahrzad Ehdaivand Slater, founded the Slater Family Foundation in 2020. His work on and off the field exemplifies character, selflessness, and the importance of being a good teammate.
Slater played college football for UCLA, earning first-team All-Pac 10 honors in 2007, and was selected by the Patriots in the fifth round of the 2008 NFL draft. He holds the record for special teams Pro Bowl selections at 10, which he set between 2011 and 2021.
Slater was the keynote speaker at PC’s 2025 MLK Convocation. In his presentation Slater said, “I do hope and pray that each of us does, at some point in our lives, experience a purposeful and passionate call. It’s my personal belief that until we realize what God has placed us here for, we don’t truly start living life. Finding one’s call means asking oneself, “What is it that’s outside of myself that guides me, that gives me purpose and drive, that transcends my circumstances each and every day when I get out of bed? For me, that’s always been my faith in God,” Slater said.
“Dr. King also understood that there was uniqueness within every human being, that God intentionally made us to be different,” Slater said. “Unfortunately, because of the climate that we live here in America, many people believe that you can only experience unity when there’s commonality. That’s not biblical; that’s not truth. We were made different for a reason, and we really experience unity where we can embrace our differences and find common ground.
“It’s OK to be different,” Slater said. “It’s OK to be who God made you to be. And it’s OK that the person next to you is different, believes differently, thinks differently, talks differently, looks differently. That’s OK, and that’s something that we need to lean into as followers of Christ.”
“I am pleased and excited that Matthew Slater has accepted our invitation to speak at Commencement, said PC President Fr. Kenneth Sicard, O.P. “He did an outstanding job when he spoke on campus at the 2025 MLK Convocation, and I have no doubt he will be just as compelling when speaking to our graduates. Matthew is a man of faith who achieved success thanks to his dedication and work ethic. I am sure that is a message he will share with the graduating class.
“I think the slate of honorary degree recipients this year is also outstanding. We are honoring alumni who have achieved success in their chosen fields as well as people whose dedicated philanthropy has contributed greatly to College projects and to scholarships for deserving students,” Fr. Sicard said.
Honorary Degree Recipients
This year, PC will honor four additional individuals at Commencement with honorary degrees. They are: MaryBeth Canavan, a retired realtor and philanthropist who, along with her husband, the late Joseph Canavan ’65, has played a pivotal role in supporting scholarships, athletics, and academic initiatives at Providence College; Donna Cupelo ’78, retired regional president and CEO of Verizon/RI and Boston; Rich Gotham ’86, president of the Boston Celtics and a former member of the College’s board of trustees; and John Killian ’77, retired executive vice president and CFO of Verizon/New England, who served as chair of PC’s board of trustees from 2013-2018.
A separate ceremony for graduate students and graduates of the School of Continuing Education will take place on Thursday, May 14 at 6:30 p.m. in the Peterson Center on the PC campus. Ms. Cupelo will be the featured speaker at that ceremony.
Further information about this year’s honorees:
MaryBeth Canavan – Retired Realtor and Philanthropist
MaryBeth Canavan is a dedicated philanthropist and longstanding philanthropic partner with Providence College. She and her husband established the M. Joseph and MaryBeth Canavan Scholarship Fund at the College in 1986 and the Canavan Family Fund in Medical Ethics in 2000. MaryBeth is a member of several important donor groups at PC including the 1917 Society, the Silver Torchbearer, the Harkins Society, and the St. Dominic Society. She is an advocate for medical ethics and rare disease research and is deeply involved in the Kate Foundation for Rett Syndrome Research, which has raised over $850,000 since 2009 to fund treatments and cures for Rett Syndrome and related disorders. MaryBeth co-hosts the foundation’s biennial gala fundraiser and actively promotes awareness and research for this cause.
Donna Cupelo ’78 – retired Verizon Communications Vice President of Public Policy/Central New England Regions
A highly accomplished senior executive and board member, Donna has spearheaded multiple initiatives that grounded Verizon as an industry leader in advanced telecommunications technologies and corporate social responsibility. Throughout her career with Verizon, she earned a reputation as a dedicated business partner to community, municipal, and government organizations, a highly respected corporate executive, and a passionate advocate for workforce development efforts. Prior to her retirement, Donna was the vice president of public policy – Central/New England Regions (2019-2021) at Verizon. She was selected to lead state government affairs in a strategic, first-of-its-kind community engagement initiative in key central and regional cities covering 22 states, including Denver, Chicago, Providence, Boston, Detroit, Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, and Minneapolis.
Previously, Donna was region vice president of Verizon New England (1997 – 2018), where she headed key initiatives, including a two-year project “One Fiber City” in Boston. Donna developed innovative agreements to enable flexibility and cost-effective deployment of advanced and wireless technology, including 5G. This culminated in her co-developing a national playbook for 5G and One Fiber that established guidelines for Verizon and municipalities in the US for the deployment of these technologies.
Donna has served on multiple boards throughout the Greater Boston and Rhode Island area. After graduating from Providence College, she earned a Master of Business Administration from Babson College in Wellesley, MA.
Rich Gotham ’86 – President, Boston Celtics
Rich Gotham is president of the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association, a post he has held since April 2007. He joined the Celtics in 2003 as EVP of Sales, Marketing and Corporate Development and was promoted to Chief Operating Officer in 2006.
Gotham graduated from PC in 1986 with a B.S. in Business Administration and a concentration in Marketing. He has remained close to the College since then, serving three terms on PC’s Board of Trustees. Most recently, he was the featured presenter at the PC School of Business Dean’s Symposium in 2024. He is a member of the College’s varsity athletics board and the Vision Team for the Men’s Basketball program.
Before joining the Celtics, Gotham spent five years in senior management positions with the global internet media company Lycos. Prior to that, he was vice president of channel sales and market development with FTP Software.
John F. Killian ’77 – Retired Executive Vice President and CFO, Verizon Communications/Worldwide
John F. Killian is a former chair of Providence College’s Board of Trustees and a former member of the College Corporation. He also served as chair of the Board’s Executive Committee, as a member of the Development and Alumni Affairs Committee, and the Board Affairs Committee. Killian became the executive vice president and chief financial officer of Verizon Communications Inc. in 2009, remaining in this position until his retirement in 2010. He began his career at Peat, Marwick, Mitchell & Co. in Providence before joining AT&T in 1979. He went on to hold several senior positions at NYNEX and in 1995 was appointed chief executive officer of one of the largest telecommunications, information services, and entertainment companies in the United Kingdom. After the Bell Atlantic / NYNEX merger in 1997, he served as group president of international telecommunications for Bell Atlantic. He was then appointed vice president of investor relations and was the corporation’s primary liaison with the investment community. After the Bell Atlantic / GTE merger in 2000, Killian was appointed senior vice president of customer operations for Verizon’s National Operations Group.
He went on to be a leader of Verizon Telecom from 2002 until 2005, serving as senior vice president, controller, and chief financial officer, until becoming President of Verizon Business in 2005.
Founded in 1917, Providence College is the only college or university in the United States administered by the Dominican Friars. The Catholic, liberal arts college has an undergraduate enrollment of approximately 4,500 students, 450 graduate students and offers degrees in over 60 academic majors. Since 1997, Providence College consistently has been ranked among the top five regional universities in the North according to U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Colleges.”
