Your Graduation Day

Plan to arrive at the commencement venue at least 60 minutes before the official starting time of the ceremony to allow for the assembly process.

Candidates will be marching and standing a good part of the time; thus, low-heeled, comfortable dress shoes are recommended. Since there are no secure areas to leave personal belongings, it is recommended that jackets, purses, and other personal items be left with your guests.

The Assembly Process

Upon arrival, all degree candidates should follow this procedure:

• Candidates will report to the Alerus Ballroom for spring commencement or the Chester Fritz Auditorium Rehearsal Room (lower level) for summer and winter ceremonies. At the assembly site, each candidate will receive a copy of the printed program and name card. You must keep this name card as you will need to hand it to the announcer to read your name as you cross the stage.
• Candidates go immediately to the signs marking their degrees and remain there.
• Student marshals and staff members will organize each column into alphabetical order. All candidates should be lined up and ready for the processional 15 minutes prior to the beginning of the ceremony.
• Processional marshals will lead the candidates from the assembly area at approximately 10 minutes prior to the beginning of commencement and into the arena/auditorium. The candidates will be directed to assigned seating and will remain standing until the President asks them to be seated.

The Order of Commencement

Processional
Welcome and Introductions from the President
Singing of “America the Beautiful”
Greetings from the State Board of Higher Education
Conferring of Honorary Degrees (if awarded)
Presentation of the Chester Fritz Distinguished Professor (if awarded)
Commencement Speaker
Conferring of Academic Degrees
Alumni Greetings
Singing of the “Alma Mater”
Recessional

The length of each ceremony differs by the number of degrees granted. These events are open to the public and no tickets are required. Commencement ceremonies are broadcast live on Grand Forks Cable Channel 3. Family members and other guests who cannot attend the ceremony can watch it on television in the Greater Grand Forks area. The ceremony is always rebroadcast on Cable Channel 3, with the dates of the broadcasts printed in the commencement program. All general commencement ceremonies will be webcast. Go to www.und.edu to connect to the event.

The Ceremony

The conferring of degrees takes place in three phases: doctoral degree, specialist/master's degrees, and baccalaureate degrees. A diploma scroll is presented to each candidate participating in the ceremony. Diplomas will be mailed approximately six weeks after commencement to your home address as indicated on Campus Connection. Please update your home address within 15 days after graduation.

Doctoral Candidates
All doctoral candidates and graduate advisors should wear proper academic regalia. The tassel is worn on the left. The proctor/stage announcer will announce each doctoral candidate individually. Each candidate will hand his/her name card (given to them during assembly) to the announcer seated at the side of the stage. When you name is announced, you will cross the stage, and stop at the the spot where you will receive your doctoral hood. Once you are hooded and presented a diploma scroll, the President will shake you hand and you can return to your original seat. All graduates will remain in the arena/auditorium for the duration of the ceremony.

All doctoral candidates and graduate advisors should wear proper academic regalia. Your hood should not be worn before your degree is conferred (see the Graduation Checklist for information on delivering your hood to the Registrar’s Office). The tassel is worn on the left.Each candidate will hand his/her name card (given to them during assembly) to the announcer seated at the side of the stage.When your name is announced, you and your advisor will cross the stage, shake the Dean’s hand, and then proceed to spot on the stage where you will receive your doctoral hood. Once you are hooded and presented a diploma scroll, the President will shake your hand and you can return to your original seat. All graduates will remain in the arena/auditorium for the duration of the ceremony.

Master’s Degree and Specialist Diploma Candidates
During the assembly process, candidates for master’s degrees and the specialist diploma line up in alphabetical order behind the signs for their respective degrees (such as Master of Arts, Master of Science, Master of Fine Arts, Master of Physical Therapy, etc.), all of which are awarded through the Graduate School for the processional. Candidates should follow the marshal assigned to the Graduate School for the processional. All master’s degree and specialist diploma candidates will wear proper academic regalia. The tassel is worn on the left.

The candidates will be led to the stage in a single file by a marshal for the conferring of degrees.Each candidate will hand his/her name card (given to them during assembly) to the announcer seated at the side of the stage. At the direction of the stage marshal, each candidate will proceed across the stage to shake hands with the Dean of the Graduate School and receive a diploma scroll from the President. After shaking hands with the President, the graduate then will exit the stage, and another marshal will direct the graduate to his/her original seats. Graduates should remain standing until all graduates from their row have returned to their original seats. All graduates will remain in the arena/auditorium for the duration of the ceremony.

Bachelor’s Degree Candidates
During the assembly process, commencement marshals and/or UND staff members will organize the baccalaureate candidates into separate columns by college, school, and by degree within that unit. Candidates receiving more than one degree must choose one college with which to march. (To avoid confusion, remember that each candidate marches with the college or school that awards his/her degree. For example, students majoring in aviation management receive the Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the College of Business and Public Administration, not the Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences.) Candidates will be placed in alphabetical order within these columns, as listed in the commencement program.

The candidates will be led to the stage in single file by a marshal for the conferring of degrees. Each candidate will hand his/her name card (given to them during assembly) to the announcer seated at the side of the stage. At the direction of the stage marshal, each candidate will proceed across the stage to shake hands with the Dean of his/her college and receive a diploma scroll from the President. The graduate then will exit the stage, and another marshal will direct the graduate to his/her original seats. Graduates will remain standing until all graduates from their row have returned to their original seats. All graduates will remain in the arena/auditorium for the duration of the ceremony

Commencement Speaker
Dave St. Peter was named the fourth president in Minnesota Twins history on November 26, 2002. He oversees the team’s strategic planning process and the club’s business departments including ticket sales and service, corporate partnerships, marketing, community affairs, communications, broadcasting, ballpark operations, human resources, technology and finance. St. Peter is also involved in business-related baseball decisions as well as the design, construction and opening of Target Field, the team’s new ballpark being built in Minneapolis’ Historic Warehouse District.

At age 43, St. Peter begins his 21st year with the Twins in 2010. He joined the Twins organization in 1990 and held a variety of positions including vice president of corporate communications. He was named senior vice president of business affairs in February of 1999 and assembled a sales and marketing group which has increased annual attendance eight of the last nine years and in aggregate by more than 128% since 2000. In addition, St. Peter’s leadership has been integral in the team’s growing corporate partnership base, expanded Twins Radio Network, aggressive community outreach and enhanced alumni involvement, including the development of the Twins Hall of Fame.

St. Peter has been part of a leadership team helping the franchise win five American League Central Division championships in the past eight seasons (2002-2004, 2006 & 2009). During St. Peter’s leadership tenure, the Twins have twice been named “Organization of the Year” by Baseball America (2002 and 2004). In 2006, the entire Twins organization was recognized as the Minneapolis Star-Tribune’s “Sports Person of the Year.” The franchise received the Atlanta Sports Council’s Horizon Award (2002) as the Professional Sports Organization of the Year while the Twins Community Fund was a 2000 recipient of the Greater Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce’s Quality of Life Award and a 2006 recipient of a Project Evergreen Award. St. Peter was named to the Street and Smith’s Sports Business Journal and Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal’s “Forty under 40” lists.

In the community, St. Peter serves on the board of the Minnesota Twins Community Fund, the Minneapolis Downtown Council, Meet Minneapolis, the Greater Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce, the Phillips Eye Institute’s Kirby Puckett Education Center Advisory Committee and the Park Nicollet Foundation.

St. Peter was born in Bismarck, North Dakota and graduated from the University of North Dakota in 1989. Dave, his wife Joanie, son Jack and twin sons Eric and Ben make their home in Eden Prairie, MN.

Recessional
After the President's closing remarks, the marshals will lead the platform group from the stage, followed by the graduates. Please meet your family and friends following the ceremony in a predetermined location to help minimize congestion.

General Information

Disability Accommodations and Accessible Seating for Candidates and Guests
Because commencement draws a large audience, the facilities we use are large, and our guests may have to walk long distances to get to their seats. Wheelchairs are available to assist people to their seats, and space is available in the auditorium/arena for people who use wheelchairs. Guests using wheelchairs in these designated seating areas may have one other person sit with them. We suggest that guests who wish to sit in specific locations arrive early. An American Sign Language interpreter is present at all ceremonies. To request the program in alternate format or other accommodations, contact the Office of the Vice President for Student and Outreach Services at (701) 777-2724 at least two weeks prior to the ceremony.

Parking for Graduates and Guests
Ample parking will be available at all commencement locations. Commencement parking is free to guests and students. Spring graduates should consider car pooling with friends of family members because of construction. Parking is limited to the south and east lots of the Alerus Center. Students should use door #5 for easy access to the ballroom line-up area. Guests may use the main entrances to the Alerus Center on the southeast corner of the building and can park in any open lot. Summer and winter graduates and their guests may park in the lot south of the Chester Fritz Auditorium. See the maps for parking and access to these facilities.

Honor Medallions
Prior to the processional, honor medallions will be distributed to candidates qualifying for academic honors. The honor designation is determined by a grade point average of 3.2 or higher in at least 50 graded credit hours completed at UND (S/U grading is not counted). Honor awards for the commencement ceremony and for publication purposes are made on the basis of the UND GPA at the end of the previous semester. Honor graduates who do not attend the ceremony and graduates who qualify for honors after their final grades are recorded will be mailed medallions at the time their diplomas are mailed.

Guest Seating.
The outside doors to commencement facilities will open early. Doors to the guest seating areas will be opened 90 minutes before the start of the ceremony. In order to minimize overcrowding at the Chester Fritz Auditorium, candidates participating in the undergraduate winter ceremony are asked to voluntarily limit themselves to four guests each.

Commencement Etiquette.
University commencement ceremonies are special events for all involved. If you choose to participate, graduates are expected to remain for the entire ceremony. Leaving the ceremony early will not be allowed.

Transcripts and Restricted Directory
It will take approximately six weeks to receive verification of your degree from your college, record this information on your permanent record, and prepare your diploma for mailing. If you are in need of a transcript reflecting your degree, you may request that a transcript be sent once at any time and indicate "hold for degree" on your request. If you have requested “Restricted Directory,” please be aware that your name will not appear in the commencement program nor will it be released to newspapers. Also, we will not be able to confirm your degree to employers or others without your specific request in writing. If you have questions or concerns regarding this policy, please call the Office of the Registrar at (701) 777-3761.

Photographs
The University has contracted the services of a professional photographer for all commencement ceremonies. This service is provided to ensure quality photographs and to avoid the confusion of many individuals attempting to position themselves for picture taking. All graduates are encouraged to have an optional posed photograph taken prior to the ceremony near the line-up area. The photographer also will take a picture of each candidate as he or she receives the diploma scroll from the President. A few weeks after the ceremony, a proof of these photos and an order form will be mailed to each graduate. At that time, you may order pictures as desired.

Tweten’s Photography, 524 Hill Ave., Grafton, ND 58237
(701) 352-1513 or 1-800-525-0625
rock@twetensphotography.com
www.twetensphotography.com

Electronic Devices.
As a courtesy to those around you and to our graduating students, please turn off pagers and cellular phones during the ceremony. We also ask that you refrain from using extreme noisemakers.

Televising of Commencement Ceremonies
UND Commencement ceremonies will be shown live on Grand Forks Cable Channel 3.

For your convenience, DVD copies of the ceremony can be purchased for $15.50 plus tax and shipping through the University Bookstore. To purchase a copy, contact the Bookstore at (701) 777-2746.

Parking at the Alerus Center and Chester Fritz Auditorium

Alerus Center

driving directions to the Alerus Center

Chester Fritz Auditorium