More than 300 to graduate with honors in USI Commencement on May 4

The University of Southern Indiana's spring Commencement will once again be held on campus this year - only the second time since 1991. Five ceremonies will be held over two days, May 3 and 4, in the Physical Activities Center (PAC), with a reception in University Center East following each ceremony.

More than 1,500 students are eligible to participate in Commencement, including 19 summa cum laude graduates, 120 magna cum laude graduates, 172 cum laude graduates, and 37 University Honors Scholars. More than 20 percent of the 2013 graduating class earned a grade point average of 3.6 or better, up about three percent from recent years.

Undergraduates will participate in four ceremonies on Saturday, May 4. The Pott College of Science, Engineering, and Education ceremony will be held at 9 a.m.; College of Nursing and Health Professions at noon; Romain College of Business and Division of Outreach and Engagement at 3 p.m.; and College of Liberal Arts at 6 p.m. The doors to the PAC will open one hour prior to the start of each ceremony. A ceremony for graduate students will be held at 6:30 p.m., Friday, May 3.

Speakers at each Commencement ceremony will be USI alumni who have excelled in their professional lives. They will come from the local community, as well as Michigan and Florida.

Honorary degrees will be presented to James Will Sr. and his wife Eileen Berendes Will at the Romain College of Business ceremony, and to John Streeman III at the College of Liberal Arts ceremony. An honorary degree from USI is the highest form of recognition granted by the institution. Individuals selected to receive an honorary degree exemplify the highest ideals of integrity, service, and dedication to learning.

FRIDAY

Chad Hartmann, veteran teacher and 2012 Peabody Outstanding Leader in Education, will deliver the Commencement address during the evening ceremony for graduate students.  He graduated from USI in 1995 with a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics and received the President's Medal. In 2000, he earned a Master of Science degree in education. He has been teaching at Helfrich Park STEM Academy for all 17 years of his teaching career. Read more about the Commencement ceremony for graduate students.

SATURDAY

Rhonda Brown will address graduates in the Pott College of Science, Engineering, and Education at 9 a.m. A resident of Groveland, Florida, Brown has been teaching high school and middle school for 20 years in Indiana and Florida. She received a 2011-2012 Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellowship to help shape national public policy on education. Brown attended USI as a non-traditional student and graduated in 1992 with a Bachelor of Science degree in education. Dr. Robert Boostrom, professor of teacher education, will receive the 2013 Distinguished Professor Award during this ceremony. Read more about the Commencement ceremony for the Pott College of Science, Engineering, and Education.

Elizabeth "Betty" Brown will be the speaker at the noon ceremony for the College of Nursing and Health Professions.  She is a quality consultant for LifePoint Hospitals and principal of ELLO Consulting, LLC, and she served as served as president of the National Association for Healthcare Quality in 2012. In 1992, she was one of the first graduates of USI's undergraduate nursing program. She earned a Master of Business Administration from USI in 2004, and holds a Master of Science in Nursing degree from the University of Evansville. Read more about the Commencement ceremony for the College of Nursing and Health Professions.

David Goodman, who earned a Bachelor of Science degree in finance and marketing from USI in 1979, will be the speaker for the Romain College of Business and Division of Outreach and Engagement ceremony at 3 p.m. He is the chief executive officer of Advanced Green Technologies, an international solar installer, and the chief executive officer of Edenark Group, a business advisory company. He holds a Master of Business Administration degree from Indiana University, graduating in 1981. He current resides in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. James Will Sr. and his wife Eileen Berendes Will will receive honorary Doctor of Laws degrees in the ceremony. Read more about the Commencement ceremony for the College of Business and Division of Outreach and Engagement.

College of Liberal Arts graduates will hear Dr. Paul Ramsey, who earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in history and German from USI in 1999, during the 6 p.m. ceremony. Ramsey is assistant professor of education at Eastern Michigan University, and he serves as editor of American Educational History Journal. He earned his master's degree and a doctorate in the history of education at Indiana University. In this ceremony, social work graduate Ashley Hilton will accept the President's Medal, the highest honor presented to a USI graduate, and John Streetman III will receive an honorary Doctor of Humanities degree. Read more about the Commencement ceremony for the College of Liberal Arts.

Guests of graduates participating in the College of Nursing and Health Professions and College of Liberal Arts ceremonies will need tickets. Students can reserve tickets through noon, Friday, April 12. For more information, go to www.usi.edu/commencement.

Live video of each ceremony will be streamed in the University Center East Conference Center (Rooms 2217-2220).

Instructions for viewing the ceremonies online are available at http://www.usi.edu/it/commencement.