Although we only have two home games left, this year’s senior class will close out their college experience at Camp Randall in May. The Senior Class Officers announced this morning that the 2014 Commencement Ceremony will take place on May 17 in Camp Randall Stadium. The decision comes as the result of a shared effort between students, Chancellor Rebecca Blank, and the Division of Student Life.
In previous years, multiple graduation ceremonies spanned the weekend, grouping students together by major. The revised commencement plan will bring all undergraduate and master’s candidates together in a ceremony at noon on Saturday, while plans are still in the works for Friday’s PhD., DMA, MFA and professional degree ceremony, according to the Senior Class Officers.
“Sitting alongside your entire graduating class will be a really powerful experience,” said Class president Joe Meeker. “Regardless of your major, school, or college, commencement is an opportunity to think about the time we’ve shared with all our fellow Badgers, and there’s no better place to reflect on that than inside Camp Randall.”
Being in Camp Randall on Game Day is an experience that can’t be explained or replicated. As Badgers, some of our fondest memories revolve around the football games, whether we actually pay attention to the field or not. Nothing says Wisconsin like cheering on the team with over 80,000 of your friends, and as seniors, we’re lucky we’ll be able to recreate a similar feeling one last time when we graduate.
With about 6,000 students graduating, the commencement ceremony is estimated to draw over 40,000 people to Camp Randall in May, according to University of Wisconsin-Madison News. Additionally, those involved in the planning process hope that one school-wide ceremony will attract a more prominent speaker.
Even though graduation is still months away, the buzz around the weekend has already begun. There’s one issue left to be addressed: Will we get to Jump Around one more time, decked out in our caps and gowns?