SRU expands its commencement
SLIPPERY ROCK — More than 1,500 Slippery Rock University students will take part in a trio of commencement ceremonies at Morrow Field House on Friday and May 7.
Undergraduate degrees will be conferred upon 1,305 graduating seniors, while 283 doctoral and master’s degrees will be awarded at the events, which for the first time will be spread over two days and three ceremonies.
SRU made the decision to add a second day and a third ceremony in part because of the growth the school has seen in its graduate programs.
“This is a great problem to have,” said university spokesman Rita Abent. “SRU’s graduate programs are continuing to grow (and) this growth was beginning to put a strain on the number of students we could accommodate in the Field House.”
Abent said the expansion would place an additional burden on staff and volunteers who work the commencement ceremonies, but the venue already would be prepared because of rehearsals that take place on Friday. Abent said the expansion is not expected to have a large effect on traffic in or around the borough.
The graduate student commencement is at 7 p.m. Friday with the field house’s doors opening at 6 p.m. No tickets are required for that ceremony and a reception will immediately follow in the GrassTex area of the field house.
The other two ceremonies are both for undergraduate students and tickets are required.
Michael Detlefsen, professor of mathematics, will serve as grand marshal of the ceremony, and SRU President Cheryl Norton will provide remarks and officially confer students’ degrees.
Lt. Col. Jeffrey Barta, professor of military science and head of the university’s Army ROTC program, will confer the oath of office to nine graduating cadets, inducting them into the Army as second lieutenants.
At 10 a.m. on May 7 undergraduates in the colleges of Health, Environment and Science and Liberal Arts will participate in graduate ceremonies. Doors for that will open at 8:30 a.m.
At 2 p.m. undergraduates in the colleges of Business and Education will graduate with doors opening at 12:30 p.m.
A reception for all undergraduate students will occur from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., at the Smith Student Center Ballroom.
Overflow seating for both events, which does not require a ticket, is available at the University’s Alumni House, Advanced Technology and Science Hall Auditorium and the Smith Student Center.
The ceremony also will be streamed live on www.sru.edu.
For information on graduation, visit http://bit.ly/1YQ61vR or call 724-738-2849.
