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PM 77-06

3/10/77

President Donald R. Gerth

Commencement Responsibility

SPEAKER

The person to give the principal address at the ceremony will be selected as early in the year as possible with every effort to issue invitations to speak to persons of prominence from a broad spectrum of activities and fields.

ATTENDANCE

It has been the institution’s objective to encourage a high level of faculty participation in the commencement ceremony on behalf of the graduates, parents, and community; and it is felt that attendance of at least two-thirds of the faculty, in total and in each academic unit, will meet this objective.

SEATING

Faculty who wish to participate in the ceremony but who do not choose to wear academic robes will be seated in a section behind the robed faculty and will not march in the procession.

CEREMONY

To the extent possible, there will be both centralized and decentralized ceremonies.  The centralized one will focus on the speakers, awards, and mass conference of degrees.  Each school will be given an opportunity to plan, in consultation with the Director of Public Affairs and Development*, a decentralized ceremony, which will probably be scheduled to follow the centralized portion of the activities.

*Editorial note:  Currently, the President appoints the person(s) coordinating Commencement.