The Ceremony
The Commencement Ceremony will begin precisely at 10:00 am on Saturday, May 22, 2010 under the tent on the main athletic field, rain or shine. Graduates must arrive at the Campus Recreation Center Fieldhouse at 8:15 am. Instructions for lining up will begin at 8:45 am and the procession for graduates will promptly leave the Campus Recreation Center at 9:30 am.
Graduates who arrive late will not be allowed to join the ceremony. Guests must be seated no later than 9:30 am as that is the time the procession begins. While we encourage guests to arrive early, no one is allowed to take their seat before 8:00 am and no one may reserve seats.
Family members may ask how long the ceremony will last. To be safe, we estimate that you allow at least two and a half hours from the start of the ceremony. Informal receptions for each respective school follows the ceremony and we encourage graduates and their guests to attend these gatherings. The locations for these receptions will be listed in the commencement program you will receive at the ceremony.
Commencement Tickets
Each graduate will receive 6 reserved tickets for seating under the Commencement tent. Small children who will be sitting on a lap are not required to have a ticket. Fire regulations prohibits any guest to stand on the outskirts of the tent. Everyone must be seated and seating is on a first come, first served basis. Graduates may invite as many guests as they would like, but must realize that seating under the tent is limited to 6 tickets per graduate. There will be no extra tickets given.
Day division students and Continuing Studies students may pick up their 6 tickets in the Office of Special Events & Conferences located in the Alumni and Admissions Center, Room 214, during the hours of 8:30 am- 4:00 pm, Monday-Friday beginning March 1 through April 23, 2010. For those Continuing Studies students who will not be able to pick up their tickets in Bristol, please call 401-254-3067 so other arrangements can be made.
Residence Hall Move-Out for Graduates
All graduates must move out of their residence hall room by 7:00pm on the day of Commencement, Saturday, May 22nd. Please plan accordingly. Questions regarding this may be directed to the Department of Housing and Residential Life at (401) 254-3161.