SPRING COMMENCEMENT POSTPONEDWe continue to monitor the COVID-19 virus and further minimize health risks to our faculty, staff and students. Guidance from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) released March 15, 2020, recommended that “for the next eight weeks, organizers (whether groups or individuals) cancel or postpone in-person events that consist of 50 people or more throughout the United States.”With UAH Commencement less than six weeks away (April 30), we have made the difficult decision to postpone our Spring Commencement exercises. We realize the disappointment this will cause many people. Commencement is a time of great joy for our graduates, their friends, and their families, who travel far and wide for this very special occasion. Many of these people are among the most vulnerable populations. The risk is just too great.Please know that canceling the ceremony does not affect graduation and awarding of degrees. The actual conferral of degrees, updating the final transcript, and mailing of diplomas is unchanged. When the semester ends, faculty will submit grades as usual, and degrees will be conferred. All students earning their degrees will receive their diplomas via mail.We appreciate your understanding and we are working to reschedule Commencement for a later time and/or find alternatives that might allow some form of recognition of our spring graduates. Spring 2020 Commencement The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) Spring 2020 Commencement will take place Thursday, April 30 at the Von Braun Center in the Propst Arena. The ceremonies will include students who have completed degree requirements in the Fall semester. Doctoral, Masters, and Bachelors degrees will be presented. 10:00 a.m. Ceremony: Colleges of Business and Engineering 2:30 p.m. Ceremony: Colleges of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences, Education, Nursing, Professional & Continuing Studies, and Science Graduating students for the 10:00 a.m. ceremony may begin checking in at the East Hall at 9:00 a.m. Graduating students for the 2:30 p.m. ceremony may begin checking in at the East Hall at 1:30 p.m. The arena will open at 9:00 a.m. for guests for the 10:00 a.m. ceremony. The arena will open at 1:30 p.m. for guests for the 2:30 p.m. ceremony. VBC Rules and Regulations Spring 2020 10am Commencement Speaker: Anthony D'Costa Professor and Eminent Scholar in Global Studies Anthony P. D'Costa is the Eminent Scholar in Global Studies and Professor of Economics at The University of Alabama in Huntsville. In the last thirty years he taught at the University of Melbourne as Chair and Professor of Contemporary Indian Studies, at the Copenhagen Business School as the A.P. Moller-Maersk Professor of Indian Studies, National University of Singapore, and the University of Washington as Professor of Comparative International Development. He has written on the political economy of steel, auto, and IT industries covering themes of capitalism and globalization, state and economic nationalism, development, innovations, industrial restructuring, employment, international migration of professionals, and inequality. He has written or edited a dozen books, published over fifty chapters and journal articles, and delivered nearly two hundred lectures and conference presentations. He has received numerous fellowships, contributed to the research effort of multilateral organizations, and served on numerous academic and professional committees. Spring 2020 2:30pm Commencement Speaker: William Wilkerson Dean, Honors College and Professor of Philosophy Dr. William Wilkerson was born in Orange County California. Despite an early passion for science, he was enticed into philosophy during his undergraduate years at Willamette University in Salem, Oregon, where he graduated in 1990. After a few years as a barista in Portland, he began graduate studies in philosophy at Purdue University, where he finished his Ph.D. in 1997. Upon completion of his degree, he joined the Philosophy Department at UAH. By 2011, he was Professor and Chair of the Philosophy Department. His research and publications focus on philosophy of mind, the history of mid-century French philosophy (particularly existentialism and phenomenology), and sexual identity. The author of many articles in these fields, his work on the role of choice in sexual identity is regularly taught around the country in courses focusing on gender identity. He is the co-editor of two volumes: New Critical Theory: Essays on Liberation and Beauvoir and Western Thought from Plato to Butler. He is also the author of a book on sexual identity, Ambiguity and Sexuality. He loves working with students and received the UAH Foundation Distinguished Teaching Award in 2003. In 2014, he was offered the position of inaugural Dean of the UAH Honors College. As Dean, he transformed and expanded the Honors curriculum to offer over 85 Honors courses in nearly 40 subjects each year, added Honors Faculty Fellows, increased extra- and co-curricular activities, and presided over enrollment growth from 450 Honors Students to nearly 1000, with a concomitant rise in average ACT from 29.5 to 31.5. He and his husband of 20 years are happy to call Huntsville home, and spend spare time working on projects around their house and yard, traveling, and caring for their rescued Labrador retriever. Information Apply to GraduateDiploma InformationCountdown to Cap and Gown Graduation ChecklistHonors and Honor SocietiesParticipants List (Spring 2020) Schedule of Events 10:00 a.m. Ceremony TimeEventLocation 9:00 a.m. Students check-in East Hall 9:00 a.m. Doors open for guests Propst Arena 10:00 a.m. Ceremony begins Propst Arena Schedule of Events 2:30 p.m. Ceremony TimeEventLocation 1:30 p.m. Students check-in East Hall 1:30 p.m. Doors open for guests Propst Arena 2:30 p.m. Ceremony begins Propst Arena Note: If there is an event at the same time as Commencement, please arrive 15-20 minutes before doors open. Candidate Instructions Guests No tickets are required for guests. Please notify family and friends that the doors will open exactly one hour prior to the scheduled ceremony time. Guests, family members and spouses are not permitted in the assembly or robing areas and should go directly to the arena. The Von Braun Center is committed to creating a safe, comfortable and enjoyable experience for all guests. All patrons entering the Von Braun Center during an event are subject to screening, which varies from event-to-event. Screenings range from visual inspection and bag search to screenings by a magnetometer (metal detector) and/or pat-down search conducted by security personnel. The purpose of the inspection is to detect prohibited items. For more information about prohibited items, please visit the VBC website. Commencement Guide Download PDF Candidates Candidates will need to arrive at the Von Braun Center one and a half hours prior to the scheduled ceremony time. See the Von Braun Center Propst Arena Layout Map for student seating locations. Line-Up and Procession Students should report to their college line-up area in the Von Braun Center East Hall no later than one hour prior to the ceremony. You will receive a line-up card indicating your number in line and be instructed by University staff about when and where to line up. Your line-up card is the key to get you across the stage. Commencement in 2 minutes! Student perspective Participation in Commencement Fall Commencement - Students who have completed degree requirements in the Summer semester, as well as those who have applied for graduation and will complete all degree requirements for the Fall semester. Spring Commencement - Students who have applied for graduation and will complete all degree requirements for the Spring semester. Doctoral candidates must notify Graduates Studies in order to participate in the ceremony. What to Bring to Commencement Degree candidates should purchase their caps and gowns from the UAH Campus Bookstore prior to the ceremony and must bring them, along with their tassels, to Commencement. Students should not bring purses, cell phones, etc., into the Von Braun Center. Personal items may not be left in the assembly or robing areas during the ceremony. Please refer to Guest Searches in the Commencement Guide for more information on prohibited items. Academic Regalia Commencement is an occasion marking a special time in a student's academic career. Appropriate attire for the occasion is a black academic gown and mortarboard with no personal accessories or messages. Undergraduate student members of academic honor societies may wear the insignia or honor cord of that academic honor society. Flowers, personal jewelry, pins or cords from social fraternities and sororities are not to be worn on academic robes. All graduates participating in the ceremony must wear their academic regalia. Caps and Gowns Caps and gowns may be purchased at Countdown to Cap and Gown or in the UAH Campus Bookstore Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Doctoral candidates should pre-order your cap and gown at least one month prior to the ceremony. Tassel Colors Arts, Humanities, & Social Sciences - White Business - Drab Education - Light Blue Engineering - Orange Nursing - Apricot Science - Gold Professional Studies - Black Doctoral - Old Gold Future Commencement Dates Fall 2020 Commencement: Monday, December 14, 2020Spring 2021 Commencement: Wednesday, May 5, 2021 Additional dates can be found at this link.