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Senior Kate Elgee is set to graduate in May with degrees in English and Spanish. She plans to end her time at the University of Idaho by walking at the commencement ceremonies and said she looks forward to graduating with her classmates.
“It’s something that will commemorate my time here,” Elgee said. “It’s a way to finalize it. It makes me feel somehow accomplished.”
While graduation should be a special day for students, it is also an important day for families, said Nancy Krogh, UI registrar.
“My family is definitely a part of my decision to walk,” Elgee said. “They are driving all the way up here for it so I wanted to do something more for them than just have a barbecue.”
Elgee will join an estimated 1,747 students expected to graduate at UI campuses statewide. The total number of graduates solely from the Moscow campus has not yet been calculated, Krogh said, but an estimated 1,400 students are expected to attended the ceremony.
Moscow’s ceremony will take place at 9:30 a.m. on May 10 in the Kibbie Dome. All degree candidates participating in the commencement are asked to meet at the Administration Lawn at 8 a.m. Students will line up with their respective colleges and form a procession to the Kibbie. The procession, led by bagpipes, is scheduled to begin at 8:30 a.m.
Family members already seated in the Kibbie will be able to watch the procession on big screens located on either side of the stage. Once all of the students have been seated, a special video will be played that captures some of their journeys at UI,
Krogh said.
“Students should expect a very meaningful day,” Krogh said. “It’s one they will hopefully remember for the rest of their lives.”
Former UI student Spencer Farrin graduated last May and said participating in the commencement ceremonies wasn’t his idea.
“My family came and wanted me to do it,” Farrin said. “If they hadn’t come I probably wouldn’t have walked.”
However, Farrin said he enjoyed the ceremony and was happy he agreed to participate.
“I think it was worth it. It was good I guess,” Farrin said. “But it was kind of long.”
The ceremony is expected to last at least two and half hours because of the magnitude of students receiving their diplomas, Krogh said.
Last year the ceremony began at 9:30 a.m. and finished just short of noon. Krogh said she encourages students not to be disheartened by the length of the ceremony.
“I know it sounds long,” Krogh said, “But students have always been happy they’ve attended, even if they’ve had doubts about it.”
The layout of the commencement ceremonies changed last May and brought with it some debate from students, Krogh said. Instead of combining all of the colleges in one cohesive ceremony, each individual college had their own private services and students only walked with the students in their college. The purpose of the change was to unite the university and allow members of every college to come together and celebrate as one, she said.
“All of the feedback on the changes has been overwhelmingly positive,” Krogh said. “Parents thought it was a special event and well organized. Students liked the level of excitement and enjoyed being able to celebrate graduation with friends from different colleges.”
Because the feedback on the change has been so positive, Krogh said things will likely stay the way they are for a long time.
After the ceremony is complete, each individual college will hold their own celebration in various locations across campus. The time and place for these celebrations, as well as more information about the ceremony, can be found on the registrar’s Web site.
Graduation ceremonies will also be held in the other three UI locations around the state which include Boise, Idaho Falls, Coeur d’Alene.
Krogh said she hopes to see many students at the ceremony in Moscow.
“Students have invested a lot of time and work in the university, just as the university has invested in them,” Krogh said. “Graduations is a great time to celebrate what’s been accomplished together.”
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