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Commencement 2015

Seniors, Commencement will soon be here! Below, please find some important information about your special day (this information has been communicated via email as well).

Special Needs Tram Stop Map

Please read UPDATE for your big day! Dear graduating seniors letter

Dear graduating seniors,

Your assembling point for the department commencement ceremony is the Don Evans Black Box Theater in Kendall Hall (entering through the rear door of Kendall Hall) 45 minutes before the ceremony begins. That’s 10:45 for our 11:30 ceremony, or 12:15 if the main ceremony is delayed due to rain and our ceremony is rescheduled for 1:00. (Please read the Severe Weather plans carefully, at http://commencement.tcnj.edu/more-info/severe-weather/.)  You should arrive in your cap and gown rather than spending time dressing in Kendall. Make sure to wear shoes that are appropriate for walking up stairs, across the stage, and down stairs.

Please be on time, since the organizers will need time to arrange you all in two lines (MA candidates leading the way) with your names written on index cards (we will provide the index card and writing utensil)–preferably with pronunciation tips for me. (Even if I know your name I might mess up the pronunciation under pressure.) Latecomers may not only have to whisper their names to me but will also miss a chance to join the grand entrance to which your guests will be looking forward. And when you begin walking, you will find out what song you have chosen for your processional, so you won’t want to miss that!

Before you go to the Black Box, escort your guests to the front door, where they will show their tickets (doors will open at 11 am), find seats in the auditorium, and enjoy the slide show of photos you have provided. Ushers will be ready to assist them, and handicapped spaces will be reserved for those guests about whom you have already notified us.

During the ceremony, your guests will be able to watch you walk across the stage without anyone blocking their view by standing up and/or raising an ipad to take a photo, since the department is hiring a photographer and uploading the photos to Snapfish and Shutterfly. This will allow everyone the opportunity to enjoy and live in the moment rather than trying to get another shot. Feel free to take photos prior to the ceremony on the lawn in front of Kendall and enjoy snapping away with your friends after the ceremony throughout campus.

A hired photographer is a first for our department, by the way, just as last year’s graduating class was the first to choose their processional. So see you Friday, as we make history together!

Dr. Jean E. Graham
Professor of English
Associate Chair, Department of English
Bliss Hall 135 (inside the department office, Bliss 129)
The College of New Jersey

 

Prior information shared:

We are looking forward to sharing your special day with you!  If you have already applied for graduation, or intend to apply and pay the late fee, here is some important information about the English Department ceremony in Kendall Hall.  (For information about graduation and commencement, please see http://advisingresources.tcnj.edu/graduation-info/ and https://commencement.tcnj.edu/.)

1. We will be using tickets this year, to make sure that all graduates have an equal opportunity at seats for their family and friends.  Each graduate will receive up to 6 tickets.  If you do not need all 6, we will put the extras in a pool and use a lottery to give graduates with more than 6 potential guests another ticket or two. Tickets must be picked up from the English Department Office Bliss Hall 129 by Thursday, May 14th. If you have not notified us that you plan to pick them up by 5pm on May 14th, they will be added to the lottery for those waiting on additional tickets.

2. We need to know NOW if either of these situations applies: you have a visual or physical impairment which will prevent you from walking up and down stairs and across the stage; one of your guests will need wheelchair accommodations. Campus will also be providing a shuttle service throughout the day as well. Please email Ms. Michelle Ordini NOW at ordini@tcnj.edu, or stop by the English Department Office to discuss accommodations with her.

3. We will create a slide show for your family and friends to view while they are waiting for the ceremony to start.  (A future email will give you more information about when and where graduates will gather before the ceremony.)  We would like your guests to see a baby photo and a current photo for each graduate; these will scroll quickly, as we will have over 100 graduates.  Please send two photos of yourself, one as a baby or small child and one more recent photo, to deptengl@tcnj.edu BY FRIDAY MAY 1.  Make sure that your face is the only one visible in the photo, so that we don’t have to seek permission from other people in the picture.  The photos should be appropriate for all audiences; we will not include any pictures that are revealing or that suggest alcohol consumption. Photos should be emailed to deptengl@tcnj.edu and each photo file name should include your first and last name.

4. Would you like to process into the auditorium to Pomp and Circumstance, or to something less traditional?  (The class of 2014 chose a song from the Harry Potter films.)  Please vote on your processional: https://tcnj.qualtrics.com//SE/?SID=SV_5jAkP1HHYS7mE4Z

Best wishes for your final semester and post-graduation plans!

 

Sigma Tau Delta Members:

All full members of Sigma Tau Delta, earning their BA or MA degrees, will appear in the departmental program as Sigma Tau Delta members, and will be recognized at our departmental graduation.  MA students who joined Sigma Tau Delta at another institution are still full members eligible to be honored at graduation.  Please send Michelle Ordini (ordini@tcnj.edu) an e-mail if you are a Sigma Tau Delta member from a different 4 year institution.

Honor cords are earned by being an active member of the TCNJ community, and by recording one’s activities at <https://english.tcnj.edu/events/commencement-2015/>.  Cords must be requested by Friday, May 1.  Please do not expect an honor cord to be ordered for you — if you do not fill out the Qualtrics survey.

 

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