Lyndon Institute is proud to announce the Commencement and Baccalaureate speakers for the graduating class of 2023.  

Commencement Speaker - Shawn Tester
Shawn Tester is the Chief Executive Officer at Northeastern Vermont Regional Hospital (NVRH). Before joining NVRH in November 2018, Tester served as CEO of Northern Counties Health Care (NCHC), a Federally Qualified Health Center with five medical and three dental practices and a Home Health & Hospice division. Prior to his time at NCHC, he spent nine years at Ammonoosuc Community Health Services (ACHS) in Littleton, NH, and three years at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, MA. 

Tester earned a Master of Science degree in Organizational Leadership from Norwich University. He also holds a degree in Business Administration from Bentley College. Shawn sits on the boards of the Northeast Kingdom Collaborative and the Vermont Association of Hospitals and Health Systems. He is a trustee of Passumpsic Bank and the Vermont State Colleges System. 

Tester grew up in North Kirby and is a proud graduate of Lyndon Institute's class of 1989. In his spare time, he enjoys biking, hunting, snowmobiling, agricultural pursuits, and spending time outdoors with his family. He lives in East Lyndon on what was his grandparents' farm with his wife, Loralee, and two sons, Timothy (16) and Patrick (14).

Baccalaureate Speaker - Richard McCarthy
Over the course of his eleven years at Lyndon Institute (LI), Richard McCarthy has worn many hats. Currently serving as the Dean of Faculty, Richard has also worked as the Humanities Chair and Head of the Lower School. Through it all, Richard has maintained a strong commitment to being a classroom English teacher. 

Richard teaches AP Literature and has been an AP Literature College Board consultant for 15 years. He spends his summers traveling to an array of cities putting on workshops to help teachers improve their craft. When he is not teaching teachers, Richard can most likely be found fishing on a river with his dogs. 

Richard received his English degree from Saint John's University in MN and his Masters in Literature from Middlebury College in Vermont. He has taught English and coached soccer in independent schools in New York City, Oklahoma City, and two in Vermont. He currently coaches the Unified Basketball team at LI. 

Lyndon Institute will hold its Commencement ceremonies on Sunday, June 4, 2023. The event starts with Baccalaureate at 10:00 a.m. in the Alumni Auditorium, followed by Commencement at 11:00 a.m. on the Robert K. Lewis Field.