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LAKELAND, Fla. — This Friday, April 25, two of the youngest graduates in Southeastern University’s (SEU) history will cross the stage at the RP Funding Center during its Spring 2025 Commencement ceremony, beginning at 5:30 p.m.
The record-setting graduates are siblings Joshua and Kaitlyn Ostergaard. In the spring of 2024, Joshua first made history as one of the university’s youngest graduates to receive a bachelor’s degree at the age of 17. During the ceremony this Friday, Kaitlyn will officially beat this record by earning a bachelor’s degree at just 16 years old.
Joshua will be setting a new record as one of the youngest graduates at SEU to earn a master’s degree at 18 years old. He will begin law school in the fall, and be on track to become a practicing attorney by his 21st birthday.
Kaitlyn also plans to continue her education by pursuing a master’s degree in marketing at Arizona State University.
The spring class of 2025 is the university’s 89th graduating class. With a total of 1,031 graduates, the class brings the total number of SEU graduates to 26,285.
The graduates originate from Florida, 48 other states and 22 countries, including the Bahamas, Brazil, Columbia, Germany, Ghana, Italy, Kenya and Nigeria. In addition, over 480 of the graduates come from 79 of SEU’s partner sites.
The ceremony will feature guest speaker Luke Barnett, senior pastor of Dream City Church, which includes eleven campuses and a church body of over 20,000 people. Barnett is an author and international speaker who has written “The Dream Centered Life” and “Adventure Your Life.”
Barnett is also a passionate advocate for human sex trafficking rescue and humanitarian relief, and has led the outreach efforts of Dream City Church to expand locally, regionally and globally through ministries such as Thrive, Where Hope Lives, Streetlight USA, Mom’s Pantry, The Dream Centers and many others. He has mentored thousands of pastors and business leaders through Dream City Church’s annual “Dream Conference,” which has been responsible for the training of over 200,000 pastors and leaders over the past 42 years.
The ceremony is open to graduates and ticketed guests.
This release is also available on the SEU Blog.
If you would like to cover this event, or arrange interviews with any of the graduates, please contact Skylar Worthington at seworthington@seu.edu to arrange parking and other details.
About SEU
Southeastern University (SEU) is a Christ-centered institution of higher learning. Founded in 1935 and located in the Central Florida community of Lakeland, SEU offers more than 100 degree programs including associate, bachelor's, master’s, and doctoral degrees. SEU’s reach expands beyond the Lakeland campus, with a comprehensive online learning program and more than 250 partner site programs worldwide. The university is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. Learn more at SEU.edu.