Matt Noyes.
This year’s Northern Essex Community College graduates will be looking for clear skies and a bright forecast for the 55th annual commencement ceremony Saturday, May 20, when NBC Boston chief meteorologist and Haverhill resident Matt Noyes addresses students.
But just in case of any kind of extreme weather, commencement, as in past years, will be held under a tent on the quadrangle on the college’s Haverhill campus, 100 Elliott St., and approximately 1,000 graduates are expected to receive certificates and associate degrees.
“Our students will appreciate Matt’s story,” says college President Lane Glenn. “We’re pleased that Northern Essex played a role, albeit small, in his journey to become a top-flight meteorologist.”
Noyes, a native and resident of Haverhill, is chief meteorologist at NBC Boston and NECN. He joined NECN in 2002 and joined the new NBC Boston in January. He broadcasts every weekday morning.
Noyes, who attended Phillips Academy in Andover and earned a bachelor’s in Meteorology from Cornell University, turned to Northern Essex in the summer of 1997 when he was struggling with a college calculus class.
He is a member of both the American Meteorological Society and the National Weather Association. In addition to his forecasting experience, he has been an instructor of meteorology at the college level, and over his career has shared his weather knowledge and enthusiasm with more than 120,000 students of all ages.
Noyes was awarded the Massachusetts State Police Public Service Award for assisting the organization in preparedness measures in case of major hurricane strike to the Commonwealth, and has traveled across New England to bring the science of meteorology into school classrooms, receiving a commendation from the Massachusetts State Senate for his educational efforts with children.