This Saturday, Dec. 15, 155 Orfalea College of Business students will be eligible to graduate in the 1 p.m. ceremony at Cal Poly’s 35th annual fall commencement.
Ceremonies are set for 9 a.m., 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. in the Cal Poly Recreation Center Main Gym. The ceremonies will include a “proud pinning” ceremony, a celebratory surprise and a large LED screen for all guests to see.
“Commencement marks a decisive transition in the lives of these future leaders in their respective fields,” said Cal Poly President Jeffrey D. Armstrong. “It provides the opportunity to salute our graduates’ accomplishments while recognizing the dedication and support each member of the Class of 2018 received from their biggest fans: family members, friends, teachers and mentors.
“We know from experience that Learn by Doing will stay with them the rest of their lives and serve them well as they begin careers or pursue higher educational goals.”
About 10,000 visitors are expected to attend. The 90-minute ceremony will be live-streamed online with closed captioning for those unable to attend.
The theme for this year’s commencement is “Mustangs Forever.”
The keynote speaker is Tjada McKenna, chief operating officer of Habitat for Humanity International and a global leader in creating innovative programming and partnerships to ensure the world’s most economically vulnerable families have access to adequate shelter and food, the foundations everyone needs to thrive.
McKenna earned a bachelor’s degree in government from Harvard College and an MBA from Harvard Business School. During the past three years, she has overseen Habitat’s program execution and service delivery across more than 70 countries to fulfill the nonprofit organization’s vision of a world where everyone has a decent place to live. Habitat has helped more than 13.2 million people meet their affordable housing needs since 1976. She also spent more than a decade working to end world hunger through the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the U.S. government. She was a key figure in establishing and leading Feed the Future, the federal government’s global hunger and food security initiative, and 2012’s G-8 initiative to unite governments and the private sector to end hunger.
The 9 a.m. ceremony will recognize graduate candidates from the College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences and the College of Science and Mathematics. Candidates from the College of Liberal Arts and the Orfalea College of Business will be honored at the 1 p.m. ceremony, and candidates from the College of Architecture and Environmental Design and the College of Engineering will be recognized at 4 p.m.
Immediately following each ceremony, participants and guests are invited to attend a reception in the Julian A. McPhee University Union Plaza, located across from the Recreation Center.
Permits are not required to park on campus during commencement. Parking will be available in the Grand Avenue Structure and Parking Structure 131, which opened in September. These lots are about a 10-minute walk from the Recreation Center. Shuttles will be available to pick up guests from the Performing Arts Center and drop them off in front of the Recreation Center.
For more information about the ceremonies, visit http://www.commencement.calpoly.edu.
Live Stream links:
Fall Commencement 9 a.m. ceremony:
https://youtu.be/h-4BcWhW8Pk
Fall Commencement 1 p.m. ceremony:
https://youtu.be/lPBf1udVNLw
Fall Commencement 4 p.m. ceremony:
https://youtu.be/QidiAhLWe-w