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Commencement Week Schedule of Events

Friday, May 16, 2008
7:00-8:30 p.m.

8:45-10:00 p.m.

Baccalaureate Service
Brubaker Auditorium, Eisenhower Campus Center

Baccalaureate Reception
Hitchcock Arena, Sollenberger Sports Center
Open to all seniors and their guests.

Saturday, May 17, 2008
7:00-8:30 a.m.

8:15-8:45 a.m.

9:00-9:15 a.m.

10:00 a.m. - noon

Noon

Continental Breakfast for Graduates
Open to all seniors

Graduates Line Up for Processional

Hitchcock Arena

Marching Instructions for Graduates

Graduates will march to the Commencement Ceremony from Hitchcock Arena. You must report to Hitchcock between 8:15-8:45 am to receive instructions and a number for your place in line. (Grads do not have a rehearsal.) There are many graduates to line up, so it is essential to arrive well before 8:45. You must be in marching order NO LATER THAN 9:10 am.

Community of Educators Lineup for Processional

Climenhaga Fine Arts Center Courtyard

Commencement Ceremony
Shoemaker Field, Starry Athletic Complex

Reception for Graduates, Families, and Guests
Creekside Lawn, Starry Athletic Complex

Information on Senior Week Activities

Other Important Information for Seniors

Baccalaureate Service Ticketed Event

The Baccalaureate service provides an opportunity to remember, reflect, and give thanks for God's faithfulness in the education of our graduates. This event is designed by graduating seniors in collaboration with the Office of College Ministries. Due to consistently increasing attendance at this event, the Baccalaureate service, effective this year, will require tickets for entry. This will help the College to ensure priority seating for graduating seniors and their families. Each graduate will be allotted a ticket to attend, and two additional tickets for family members/guests for seating in Brubaker Auditorium. Graduates will also have a first-come, first-served opportunity to receive two additional tickets for guest seating in Lottie Nelson Dining Room, located on the second level of Eisenhower Campus Center, where the service will be broadcast live via closed-circuit television.

Baccalaureate Tickets Q&A

Baccalaureate Reception

Following the Baccalaureate service, college educators will host a dessert reception for graduating seniors and their families. This reception provides you with an opportunity to meet faculty members who have helped to shape your graduate’s educational experience. No tickets are required for entry.

Commencement Ceremony

Tickets are not required for the Commencement ceremony. Seating is plentiful and is available on a first-come, first-served basis. Seating at the site of the outdoor Commencement ceremony will open at 8:30 a.m. The ceremony begins promptly at 10:00 a.m. We ask that all guests be seated by 9:45 a.m. to help ensure that the ceremony begins on time. Following the ceremony, the graduates are invited to gather with their guests and college educators on the Creekside Lawn for greetings, congratulations, and light refreshments.

Inclement Weather

The Commencement ceremony is planned as an outdoor activity, and the College’s strong preference is to hold the ceremony outside at the scheduled time. In the case of mildly inclement weather, the ceremony will proceed as scheduled. Please dress accordingly for conditions. If the inclement weather is severe, an alternative schedule according to one of the below options will be followed:

Option A: If the inclement weather is severe, but of a passing nature, the College will postpone the ceremony until 1:00 p.m. At that time, the ceremony will be held at the outdoor athletic complex as planned.

Option B: If the inclement weather is severe and is NOT of a passing nature, the College will hold two abbreviated indoor ceremonies—one at 11 a.m. and the other at 2 p.m.—both in the Brubaker Auditorium of the Eisenhower Campus Center. Graduates are assigned a ceremony time based on which academic school they are graduating from. In the event this option is enacted, seating will be limited inside the auditorium, and some guests may need to be directed to view the Commencement ceremony live via closed-circuit television in Lottie Nelson Dining Room, located on the second level of Eisenhower Campus Center.

11:00 a.m. Ceremony

• School of Education and Social Sciences

• School of the Humanities

2:00 p.m. Ceremony

• School of the Arts

• School of Health and Natural Sciences

• School of Mathematics, Engineering and Business

A decision regarding any changes to the schedule will be made by 6:00 a.m. on Commencement day. Announcements regarding the schedule will be posted on the College’s telephone hot line at (717) 691-6084, and on the College’s web site at www.messiah.edu.

Commencement Courtesies

In order to ensure an enjoyable experience for all graduates’ families and guests, the College asks your kind cooperation with the following:

Please keep the main aisles clear of strollers, camera tripods, and other personal belongings at all times—this is particularly important for the safety of the graduates and faculty during the processional and recessional.
Guests are asked to turn off audible cell phones and pagers during the Commencement ceremony.
Please refrain from using umbrellas, shoulder-mounted cameras, or other possible visual obstructions in areas where they may block the view of other guests during the ceremony.
Please be courteous of the noise level while students’ names are being read during the presentation of diplomas.
Pets/animals of any kind are not permitted at Starry Athletic Field (with the exception of special assistance animals for our guests with a disability).
There is ample seating for all guests during the Commencement ceremony. Guests are asked not to bring lawn chairs or other supplemental seating to the ceremony site.
Guests are asked not to bring coolers to the Commencement ceremony. (Complimentary bottled water is provided to guests both prior to and during the ceremony, followed by a refreshments reception after the ceremony.)

Commencement Speaker

The Commencement speaker for 2008 is Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Sonia Nazario. Ms. Nazario, a reporter for the "Los Angeles Times," has spent more than two decades reporting and writing about social issues, earning her dozens of national awards. The newspaper series on which her book, "Enrique's Journey," was based won the Pulitzer Prize for feature writing, the George Polk Award for International Reporting, and the Grand Prize of the Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Awards. Raised in both Kansas and Argentina, Ms. Nazario has written extensively from Latin America and about Latinos in the United States.

Accommodations

A list of nearby hotels, inns, and bed and breakfasts, is provided on the College’s web site at www.messiah.edu/visitors/lodging.html. Families are encouraged to make reservations early, as local hotels fill quickly during this time of year. Graduates who have lived on campus during the spring semester may continue to use their rooms during Commencement weekend. (Seniors will receive more details later in the semester regarding moving out timeline and procedures.) Unfortunately, no lodging is available on campus for additional guests.

Flower Sale

For our guests’ convenience, family and friends may purchase flowers for graduates on Commencement day at the Starry Athletic Complex, where the Commencement ceremony is held. Bouquet prices will range from $15 to $30; cash, check, and major credit cards will be accepted. The on-site sale will continue while supplies last, and flowers are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Guests who would like to place advance orders for flowers (which would be pre-purchased and available for pick up that day) may visit the vendor’s web site at http://www.commencementflowers.com/index.php?id=MESS1.

Caps and Gowns

This fall, when seniors applied to graduate, they submitted their measurements to the Registrar's Office for their cap and gown. The College placed the cap and gown order last semester for all graduating seniors (there is no charge to students). Caps and gowns are souvenir regalia that may be kept by the graduates.

Caps and gowns will be available for distribution in Eisenhower room 125 (multi-purpose room) at the following days/times:

Grantham students:

Monday, May 12, 11 a.m.-4 p.m.

Tuesday, May 12, 11 a.m.-8:30 p.m.

Wednesday, May 14 -- Friday, May 18, 11 a.m.-4 p.m.

Philadelphia, Off-campus program students, December grads:

Saturday, May 19, 7:30-9 a.m. OR any of the above listed times

Please contact Gretchen Banks (gbanks@messiah.edu) of the Purchasing Office if you have any questions about cap and gown distribution.

Diplomas

At the Commencement ceremony, graduates will receive their diploma cover with a congratulatory note inside. Following the final posting of grades, the Registrar’s Office will review the academic record of each student and make final verification of all coursework and degrees. At that time (approximately four weeks following the Commencement ceremony), diplomas will be mailed to the address requested by the student via first class mail. Accordingly, it is important that each student have a valid mailing address on file with the Registrar’s Office prior to Commencement.

Graduation Requirements

Seniors who have questions regarding their graduation requirements are encouraged to contact their advisors as early as possible so that they may review their coursework and degree audit online. Any remaining questions may then be sent to DegreeCertification@messiah.edu.

Honors

The Latin honors listed in the Commencement program (cum laude, magna cum laude, and summa cum laude) are based upon graduates’ academic standing at the end of the Fall 2007 semester. Final honors reflected on students’ academic transcripts and diplomas will be based on their academic coursework completed at Messiah.

Graduation Announcements

Herff Jones is the exclusive, official provider of graduation announcements for Messiah College. Orders should be placed online at www.herff-jones.com/college. Orders for graduation announcements are not placed through The Campus Store; however, questions concerning announcements may be directed to the bookstore staff at (717) 691-6024.

Professional Photography

Chappell Studios is the official photographer for Messiah’s Commencement ceremony. A professional photographer will take an individual picture of each graduate on stage as they receive his/her diploma. Notification that the proofs are available, along with instructions on how to view and order photos directly from the studio, will be mailed to graduates five to seven days after Commencement. If you would like to contact the studio following Commencement, call (800) 424-3686. To pre-register your contact info and/or add family/friends to view your Commencement photos, click here.

Professional Videotaping

The College has contracted with VTS Productions, a national Telly Award-winning company, to serve as the official videographer for Commencement. Using high-quality digital equipment, VTS will make professional DVD or VHS copies of both the Baccalaureate and Commencement ceremonies available for purchase, including special close-up shots of graduates receiving their degrees and other ceremony highlights. Information regarding costs/ordering instructions may be obtained by calling (877) 891-1002.

Parking

On Commencement day, traffic personnel will direct guests to designated parking areas on campus. From there, a shuttle service will transport guests between their parking area and the athletic complex both before and after the Commencement ceremony. The distance from the shuttle drop-off point, across the covered bridge to the ceremony site, is a fairly short walk on a paved surface. Special transportation, however, will be available by request that day for those guests requiring assistance between the shuttle drop point and the ceremony site. Limited disability parking is available at the ceremony site and requires a special assistance parking pass, which will need to be picked up by the graduate in advance for his/her guests, after April 23, 2008, from the Dispatch Office located in the Eisenhower Campus Center.

Commuter students may pick up a parking pass at the Dispatch Office located in Eisenhower Campus Center after April 23, 2008. Commuters must have a pass in order to park near Eisenhower Campus Center on Commencement day, and should arrive on campus early to avoid delays in getting to the ceremony.

Commencement is a long-awaited time of celebration—for your family, and for your graduate’s classmates and their families. The details outlined above and on the web site will help to assure a special and memorable day for everyone. For any special needs or questions that you may have regarding Commencement weekend, please contact the College’s Office of Campus Events and Conference Services at (717) 691-6009. We look forward to seeing you and your family at Commencement!