Some 5,000 University of Iowa students will mark educational milestones as they receive their degrees at spring 2014 commencement ceremonies.
Ceremonies begin Thursday, May 15, with College of Pharmacy commencement and end Friday, June 6, with the College of Dentistry. All other ceremonies will be held May 16-17.
Use the hashtag #UIGrad14 to join the celebration on social media.
Split ceremonies will be held for College of Liberal Arts and Sciences undergraduates, accommodating more family members and guests. All commencement ceremonies will be streamed live on the Web via the Iowa Now website.
See below for dates, times, locations, and additional info on each ceremony, including live streaming video details. Find additional commencement information on the Office of the Registrar website.
Thursday, May 15
College of Pharmacy, 10 a.m. Marriott Hotel and Conference Center, Coralville: Participating university officials include UI President Sally Mason. Jenelle Sobotka, UI alumni and faculty member at Ohio Northern University, will be the guest speaker. Katy Rolfes, graduating class president, will be the student speaker. Graduates should arrive no later than 9:15 a.m.
Live video stream location: http://now.uiowa.edu/2014/05/video-ui-college-pharmacy-commencement
Friday, May 16
School of Management, Tippie College of Business, 10 a.m. Marriott Hotel and Conference Center, Coralville: Diane Dillon-Ridgley, executive director of the Women’s Network for a Sustainable Future, will be the guest speaker. Doors open at 9 a.m.
Live video stream location: http://now.uiowa.edu/2014/05/video-ui-tippie-school-management-mba-commencement
College of Law, 1 p.m. Iowa Memorial Union Main Lounge: Rita Garman, UI alumna and chief justice of the Illinois Supreme Court, will be the guest speaker. Graduates should arrive no later than 12 p.m.
Live video stream location: http://now.uiowa.edu/2014/05/video-ui-college-law-commencement
Carver College of Medicine, 6:30 p.m. Marriott Hotel and Conference Center: Participating university officials include P. Barry Butler, executive vice president and provost. Manish Suneja, UI clinical associate professor of internal medicine, has been chosen as guest speaker by the graduating class.
Live video stream location: http://now.uiowa.edu/2014/05/video-ui-carver-college-medicine-commencement
Graduate College, 7 p.m. Carver Hawkeye Arena: Doors open at 6 p.m. and graduates should arrive no later than 6:15.
Live video stream location: http://now.uiowa.edu/2014/05/video-ui-graduate-college-commencement
Saturday, May 17
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, 9 a.m. Carver Hawkeye Arena: Ceremony for graduates majoring in actuarial science; applied physics; Asian languages and literature; astronomy; Bachelor of Applied Studies program; Bachelor of Liberal Studies program; comparative literature; dance; ethics and public policy; French; German; interdepartmental studies; international relations; international studies; Italian; journalism and mass communication; linguistics; mathematics; microbiology; music; philosophy; physics; political science; Portuguese; psychology; religious studies; Russian; social work; sociology; Spanish; statistics; and theatre arts.
Participating university officials include Tom Rocklin; vice president for student life. Dave Gould, UI adjunct lecturer in interdepartmental studies, will be the guest speaker. Doors open at 8 a.m. and graduates should arrive no later than 8:15.
Live video stream: http://now.uiowa.edu/2014/05/video-ui-college-liberal-arts-and-sciences-am-commencement
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, 1 p.m., Carver Hawkeye Arena: Ceremony for graduates majoring in African American studies; American studies; ancient civilization; anthropology; art; art history; athletic training; biochemistry; biology; chemistry; cinema; classical languages; communication studies; computer science; economics; elementary education; English; environmental policy and planning; environmental sciences; gender; women’s; and sexuality studies; geography; geoscience; health and human physiology; health and sport studies; history; human physiology; informatics; integrative physiology; leisure studies; science education; speech and hearing science; and sport studies.
Participating university officials include Tom Rocklin, vice president for student life. Robert Cargill, UI assistant professor of classics, will be the guest speaker. Doors open at 12 p.m. and graduates should arrive no later than 12:15.
Live video stream: http://now.uiowa.edu/2014/05/video-college-liberal-arts-and-sciences-pm-commencement
College of Engineering, 10 a.m. Marriott Hotel and Conference Center, Coralville: Manny Villafana, recipient of an Honorary Doctor of Science degree, will be the guest speaker. Graduates should arrive no later than 9 a.m.
Live video stream: http://now.uiowa.edu/2014/05/video-college-engineering-commencement
College of Nursing, 10 a.m. Iowa Memorial Union Main Lounge: Participating university officials include Carroll Reasoner, vice president for legal affairs and general counsel. Graduates should arrive no later than 9:14 a.m.
Live video stream: http://now.uiowa.edu/2014/05/video-college-nursing-commencement
Tippie College of Business, 5 p.m. Carver Hawkeye Arena: Len Hadley, former Maytag CEO and recipient of an Honorary Doctor of Human Letters degree, will be the guest speaker. Graduate Carly Kerndt will be the student speaker. Graduates should arrive no later than 4:15 p.m.
Live video stream: http://now.uiowa.edu/2014/05/video-tippie-college-business-commencement
Friday, June 6
College of Dentistry, 6 p.m. Marriott Hotel and Conference Center, Coraville: Participating university officials include UI President Sally Mason. Katie Nagel, graduating class president, will be the student speaker.
Honorary degrees
This spring, the University of Iowa awards honorary degrees to Leonard A. Hadley and Manny Villafana in recognition of their contributions to industry, civic involvement, and support for UI students and programs.
UI alumnus Hadley will receive an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree at the Tippie College of Business Commencement. College of Business dean Sarah Gardial describes Hadley as “a stellar example of someone who reached the highest point possible in his working career, but also has had a significant impact on his alma mater.”
Hadley served as CEO and chairman of Maytag and company, coming out of retirement to help save the company. He and his wife, Marlene, have lent generous support to the College of Business, Hawkeye football, the Department of Ophthalmology, and other UI programs.
Villafana will receive an Honorary Doctor of Science degree at the College of Engineering commencement. Since 1971, he’s founded a series of medical device companies, and today serves as founder, chairman, and CEO of Kips Bay Medical.
“His amazing ability to identify and develop new medical devices has touched countless lives,” says Alec Scraton, UI College of Engineering dean.
Villafana helped turn the college’s biomedical engineering department into the nationally recognized program it is today. He and his wife, Elizabeth Elder Villafana (UI alumna) also made gifts to establish the Elder Computer Laboratory and to enhance facilities for all engineering students.
Read more about Hadley and Villafana in this announcement from December.
Streaming, broadcast, and social media
See ceremony details above for live video stream links. Streaming pages will go live prior to ceremonies, and archival videos will replace live streams on these pages shortly after the ceremonies conclude.
Graduate College, College of Law, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and Tippie College of Business ceremonies also will be broadcast live on UITV, Mediacom cable channel 17 in the Iowa City area.
Social media users can join the celebration online by using the hashtag #UIGrad14 with UI-graduation-related posts. Best posts will be shared via UI social media channels and on the Iowa Now website.
Related events
Other events also pay tribute to this year’s graduating students (most are by invitation—contact organizers for more info):
- The Center for Student Involvement and Leadership, the Chief Diversity Office, and the LGBT Staff and Faculty Association host the Rainbow Graduation Celebration May 13 at the Old Capitol. Contact jefri-palermo@uiowa.edu for more info or to RSVP.
- The Center for Diversity and Enrichment hosts a Graduation Reception and awards presentation 3 p.m. May 15 in the Main Floor Ballroom, Iowa Memorial Union. The event is open to the public—contact cayla-wencl@uiowa.edu for more information.
- The College of Education hosts a Teacher Education Convocation for invited guests May 16, recognizing students who completed teacher education certification along with their degrees. Amy Shoultz will be the faculty speaker, Sue Dvorsky will provide the keynote, and Ellysa Cassier will be the student speaker.
Individuals with disabilities are encouraged to attend all University of Iowa sponsored events. If you are a person with a disability who requires a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in this program, please contact marcia-mcnamara@uiowa.edu in advance.