Changes for spring graduation

Feb. 25, 2005
By Heather Venema
News Editor

Ask any senior on campus, and they can probably give you the number of hours until they walk across the stage and collect their diploma.  And for those keeping track, the countdown got a little brighter last week, as the time for commencement was altered by five hours.

Commencement is traditionally held on Mother’s Day at 3 p.m., but due to a scheduling conflict with The Mark of the Quad Cities, the ceremony was moved to 10 a.m.  Since the academic calendar is a little later this year than normal, St. Ambrose’s graduation was scheduled for the same time as Western Illinois’s graduation.

President Rogalski was in San Diego on the afternoon of Friday, Feb. 11, when he received the call about a conflict with graduation.  He immediately scheduled a meeting with the officers on Monday morning, to figure out how to correct the situation.

Several different scenarios were looked at, but in the end, the President Rogalski ultimately made the decision to preserve the day, and to work with Western and The Mark on accommodating SAU at a different time.

“Everybody had a lot of flexibility with problem,” President Rogalski said. 

Because of the change for commencement, several events regarding graduation weekend were altered also.  The hooding ceremonies will take place on Saturday, May 14, at 3 p.m. in the afternoon.  Baccalaureate Mass will be held at 4:30 on Saturday, and the reception hosted by alumni and parents will follow mass from 5:30 to 7:30.

Commencement will begin at 10 a.m. on Sunday, May 15 at The Mark.  Weather permitting, the President’s Reception will be held on an outdoor patio at The Mark.  If weather does not allow for that, the reception will hopefully be moved indoors.  St. Ambrose must be out of The Mark by noon in order to allow enough time for Western Illinois to begin its commencement exercises.

However, some students have raised concerns about the sanctity of commencement at Ambrose, with the termination of the ceremony under the oaks.

“Commencement at St. Ambrose will always preserve our integrity,” Rogalski said.  “While the pomp and circumstance will always remain, graduation will always have a personalized nature.”

SGA has begun discussing some minor alternations for graduation, to try and put new traditions into place.  These include having the senior class senator speak at the graduation ceremony instead of the Baccalaureate Mass, and possibly using a blue carpet and banners to decorate the ceremony.

“Students need to know that they are what is most important,” Rogalski said. 

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