Celebrating Our Newest Alumni
THE LIVE STREAM OF COMMENCEMENT WILL BE AVAILABLE HERE BEGINNING AT 8:40 A.M. ON SUNDAY, MAY 6.
LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 4, 2012) — What an exciting year it has been to be a Wildcat! From welcoming a new president to welcoming home the NCAA men's basketball championship, the graduating students have had a lot of fond memories during their time as UK students. But on Sunday, May 6, the celebration will turn to the students themselves, at the University of Kentucky's 145th Commencement Ceremonies. Rupp Arena will be filled with proud families and friends waiting for a loved one to walk across the stage and receive a diploma.
This year’s Commencement will not only mark a new beginning for graduates, but for the university as well. Keeping with UK tradition, President Eli Capilouto will deliver the Commencement address to students. UK presidents address the graduating class at the first and last Commencements of their tenure.
Dr. Capilouto became the 12th president of the University of Kentucky on July 1, 2011. With the recent groundbreaking on a new residence hall on campus, Capilouto is passionate about fulfilling the Kentucky Promise, UK's initiative to revitalize the campus, enhance undergraduate education, offer more opportunities to young Kentuckians through scholarships and continue a nearly 150-year legacy of education, research and service to the Commonwealth.
More than 4,000 students are receiving degrees this May. UK will confer 988 graduate degrees, 457 professional degrees and 2,710 undergraduate degrees. More than half of those students have chosen to participate in the Commencement ceremonies. The graduate/professional ceremony will honor more than 500 students participating and the two undergraduate ceremonies will include more than 1,900 students walking across the stage.
All Commencement ceremonies will take place on Sunday, May 6, at Rupp Arena.
The first ceremony of the day will take place at 9 a.m. This ceremony will be for all graduate and professional students.
The second ceremony recognizes undergraduates from the colleges of Agriculture, Business and Economics, Education, Engineering and Nursing. This ceremony begins at 1 p.m.
Ronald Harrison, son of Teresa Wales and Ronald Harrison of Louisville, will serve as the student speaker at the 1 p.m. Commencement ceremony. A marketing and international business major and Gatton Global Scholar, Harrison is an active member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. He was selected for the Emerging Leader Institute and the University Leadership Summit and was a founding member of the Collegiate 100 and Black Male Initiative. He has studied abroad in both Germany and Spain and has developed a love of travel and the world from his experiences abroad. He has also interned with Proctor and Gamble and the Ronald McDonald House, where he still volunteers. After graduation, Harrison will move to Philadelphia to work for Proctor and Gamble.
The third ceremony will be held at 6 p.m. The undergraduate students honored at this ceremony will be from the colleges of Arts and Sciences, Communications and Information Studies, Design, Fine Arts, Health Sciences and Social Work.
Anna Coutts, daughter of Jean and Walter Coutts of Colorado Springs, Colo., is the student speaker for the 6 p.m. Commencement ceremony. An arts administration major with a minor in business, Coutts has traveled the world and developed her love of the arts. She has studied abroad in Rome, where she also completed an internship. She has also interned with the UK Art Museum and the Singletary Center for the Arts. She serves as a College of Fine Arts Ambassador and was the vice president of Patterson Hall as a freshman. After graduation, Coutts will be working at the United Way of Greater Cincinnati.
Family members and friends unable to attend the Commencement ceremonies can watch the events live online on UKNow, UK’s news website, at www.uky.edu/uknow. Live-streaming will be available for all three ceremonies. Prior to each ceremony, UK students will host “Live from the Big Blue Carpet,” a special pre-show that will feature a behind the scenes look at graduation and interviews with faculty, administrators and excited graduates. “Live from the Big Blue Carpet” begins approximately 15 minutes prior to the start of each ceremony.
Twitter.com will also be used during the ceremonies (and before) through the use of the hash tag #UKGrad to celebrate our graduates and all of the events surrounding Commencement. Follow UK's official Twitter account twitter.com/UniversityofKy for updates regarding Commencement. (Please note that if your tweets are protected, they will not appear in the #UKGrad search.) UK’s Facebook page, www.facebook.com/universityofky will also be a hub for Commencement information.
For those attending Commencement, a family room will available to accommodate guests who may have difficulty navigating the stairs at Rupp Arena or for children who become restless during the day’s events. Located in Thoroughbred Room 8, the family room will include a television monitor for viewing the day’s events live.
For more information regarding the 145th Commencement Ceremonies, including answers to commonly asked questions, please visit www.uky.edu/commencement.
2012 Commencement Calendar
Sunday, May 6, 2012
Rupp Arena
Commencement Ceremonies
8:45 a.m. – “Live from the Big Blue Carpet” (online at www.uky.edu/uknow)
9 a.m. - Graduate and Professional Ceremony
12:45 p.m. – “Live from the Big Blue Carpet” (online at www.uky.edu/uknow)
1 p.m. – Undergraduate Ceremony honoring students from the colleges of Agriculture, Gatton College of Business and Economics, Education, Engineering and Nursing
5:45 p.m. – “Live from the Big Blue Carpet” (online at www.uky.edu/uknow)
6 p.m. – Undergraduate Ceremony honoring students from the colleges of Arts and Sciences, Communications and Information Studies, Design, Fine Arts, Health Sciences and Social Work
College of Engineering – 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Bluegrass Ballroom pre-function area
Graduate School – 11 a.m. to12:30 p.m., Thoroughbred Rooms 1-3 and pre-function area
College of Design – 1 to 3 p.m., Land of Tomorrow Gallery, 527 E. Third Street
Joint Undergraduate Reception – 3 to 5 p.m., Bluegrass Ballroom hosted by the UK Alumni Association and the colleges of Agriculture, Arts and Sciences, Business and Economics, Communications and Information Studies, Education, Fine Arts, Health Sciences and Social Work.
The University of Kentucky is excited to honor the hard work and dedication of this year’s graduates. For more information on the 145th Commencement Ceremonies, visit www.uky.edu/commencement.