Graduating seniors have expressed confusion about the Spring 2023 Commencement. 

Students have raised questions about where they can find details on graduation dates, guests and caps and gowns. 

Sarah Jones, senior marketing major, said she has not received much information about the upcoming Spring 2023 Commencement Ceremonies in May. 

“So I’m a senior and everything, and I’m graduating this spring, and January went by, and then February went by, and I haven’t received any emails about graduation except this one where they emailed asking, ‘Are you going to commencement, yes, or no,’ state your hometown, whatever,’” Jones said.

Jones said she is confused because an employee at the campus bookstore told her seniors should have been receiving emails even though she has not been receiving any. 

“I think there’s got to be some sort of miscommunication,” Jones said. “Because when I tried to explain I’m not the only one, people have not been getting emails, I was kind of brushed off. I’m told, ‘No, I’m just not checking my email,’ and that’s not true for everyone else.”

Jones said her and her friends who are graduating in May keep checking their emails, hoping to get information but have received none. 

“You have all these confused seniors and what’s supposed to be a really important thing, and it’s literally next month, pretty much like after March, and no information,” Jones said.

Hunter Weaver, senior sociology major, said there has been a lack of communication between graduating seniors and the commencement ceremonies. 

“It has made it difficult to plan,” Weaver said. “But, I was able to find it on the commencement website, which was helpful to be able to tell my family.”

According to USI’s Spring 2023 commencement ceremonies page, the official graduation dates are May 5 and May 6 in the Screaming Eagles Arena.  

Kindra Strupp, vice president for marketing and communications, said there will be five commencement ceremonies. 

The ceremonies for the School of Graduate Studies will be held May 5.

There will be four ceremonies for undergraduates at 9 a.m., 10 p.m., 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. May 6 for each respective college. 

• College of Liberal Arts – May 6 at 9 a.m. 
• Romain College of Business – May 6 at noon
• College of Nursing and Health Professions – May 6 at 3 p.m.
• Pott College of Science, Engineering and Education – May 6 at 6 p.m.

Weaver said even though he knows the date and time, he is not sure what to expect.

Strupp said there will not be a practice walkthrough for graduates, but there will only be a practice for the people who are putting together the commencement. She said seniors will soon receive more information through their USI email on where to come in and line up during the ceremony.

Strupp said the deadline recently passed for applying to graduate in Spring 2023. 

“So, from this point forward, more information comes out,” Strupp said.

She said graduates should go to the Screaming Eagles Complex to line up for commencement, and there will be people to assist graduate students and show them where to go.

“If you’re a nine o’clock ceremony on Saturday, you’ll want to show up at eight,” Strupp said. “Make sure you get in line, and they get you all squared away. They’ll show you where to walk your lead and all that kind of thing.”

Strupp said there will not be tickets for the commencement. She said there have been tickets for previous commencements due to COVID-19, but the university does not think they will be necessary for the upcoming commencement.

“As many family members or friends who want to come, that’s fine,” Strupp said. “We also have a streaming, so folks who are outside of our area or international who can’t come could watch the ceremony online.”

Strupp said seniors are allowed to decorate their caps.

“Fact is, I really enjoy the ones that come through,” Strupp said. “It’s fun to see people’s creativity on those. Some of our best photos, I think, are the ones that have fun caps.”

Strupp said students may have been confused about the commencement dates online.

Jones said she was confused about the graduation dates because, when she looked online at the graduation dates, she saw several different times listed. She said other seniors were also confused.

“I was just asking other seniors, and everyone was like, ‘Yeah, we have no idea about anything,’” Jones said.

Jones said seniors have only received the email asking if they were attending the commencement ceremony. She said she and other students could not find the right graduation date online.

“We all had different graduation dates, even though we’re all in the same college,” Jones said. “There was another girl that said the fifth on Friday, everyone else had the six on Saturday and we had one girl whose was in June.”

Strupp said students may see online June 16 or July 28, and those are the end of the first and second summer sessions for this summer of 2023. 

“It is possible that some students may have seen those summer dates and not realized that is the date they will finish their degree,” Strupp said. “And, not the date for the ceremonial celebration of achieving that goal, commencement ceremonies, which in this case is before they finish their coursework.”

The university said students can get their regalia through the USI Campus Store. The last day to order is April 9. 

Jessica Leonard, manager of the USI Campus Store, said the bookstore does not send out official information on commencement details to graduating seniors.

Leonard said the bookstore has caps and gowns for sale for seniors to purchase.

“You don’t have to purchase it through the campus store, but they have all the information on what you need,” Strupp said.

Strupp said graduates can only wear one stole at commencement. She said graduates can get a red, white or blue stole depending on their GPA. 

She also said graduates should look at the policy on the website to see what has been approved through the Provost’s Office and Student Affairs organization regarding the various organizations offering stoles for graduates.

“I guess that’s the problem, is there’s a lack of knowledge, and I’ve been able to find things out by going through several different resources, but I’ve definitely had to jump through more hoops than I feel was necessary, considering graduation is such a big deal,” Jones said.

Strupp said any questions can be sent to [email protected], and it is monitored every day.