This fall's convocation ceremony for December graduate students, hosted by the Office of Graduate Studies each semester, has been canceled.
The cancellation is a result of recent renovations taking place at the Performing Arts Center, where the event is held every year. To remedy the situation, John Dalton, assistant dean of graduate studies, said his office has asked the colleges to include their graduate students in their undergraduate commencement ceremonies in December.
"I know the colleges of Liberal Arts, Natural Sciences, Engineering and Communication have all confirmed that their graduate students will be recognized with their undergraduate students at the December convocation ceremonies," Dalton said.
However, the College of Education announced that it will not be able to accommodate these students this semester. Dalton said he could not confirm that all of the University's colleges would incorporate their graduate students into their undergraduate ceremonies.
In an e-mail obtained by the Texan from Sherry Field, associate dean of the College of Education, to Larry Abraham, a professor in the college, Field said that due to facility and time constraints, the college will not be able to include the graduate students in the undergraduate ceremony, nor will it be able to host a separate ceremony for those students.
Educational psychology graduate student Shilpa Motwani, who had planned to graduate this fall with a commencement ceremony, said she has tried talking to faculty and staff in the education college.
"I could wait until the spring, but I feel that downgrades me being able to finish this program early," Motwani said. "And by that time it is old news."
Dalton said students affected by the cancellation are invited to attend the University-wide ceremony in May.
For now, Motwani and the other scheduled graduates in the College of Education will have to wait until spring to walk across the stage.
"I work full time here at the University and, being a part-time student, I have given up a lot of my free time to studying and have had the loss of camaraderie among my peers because I started in the spring," Motwani said. "I really was looking forward to celebrating my graduation on time."
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