HIGHLIGHTS:
- Jeanne Woodford is Graduation Speaker
- Honorary Degree to Technology Pioneer Les Vadasz
- Excellence in Teaching Awards to Stauffer, Toczyski
- Re-entry Student Earns Math Degree While Living
in Residence Halls.
- 83-Year Old Picks Up a Master's in History
- Sculpture Students Display Public Art Works
ROHNERT PARK - Sonoma State University holds its 45th annual commencement ceremonies on Saturday, May 27 in an event that historically draws more than 10,000 people to Commencement Lawn on the Rohnert Park campus.
Of the approximately 2,100 SSU students eligible to graduate, more than 1,500 are expected to participate with their families and friends in attendance
The ceremonies are scheduled at 9 a.m. for the School of Science and Technology and the School of Social Sciences and 3 p.m. for the School of Arts and Humanities, School of Business and Economics, and the School of Education.
For the first time, sculpture students will display 13 large public art works on the campus in a project that can also be viewed from the University Web site using Google Earth.
Keynote speaker for both the morning and afternoon ceremony is Jeanne Woodford, the first female warden of San Quentin and now the undersecretary of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
SSU will also honor Leslie L. Vadasz of Sonoma with a honorary Doctor of Science degree. Vadasz was a member of Intel Corporation's' founding team in 1968. He led design teams that developed some of the semiconductor industry's most significant products.
Excellence in Teaching Awards will go to Computer Science professor Lynn Stauffer and Modern Languages professor Suzanne Toczyski. The awards are funded by a grant from the Sarlo Foundation of the Jewish Community Endowment Fund and by Dr. Bernard and Estelle Goldstein.
Student speakers at the commencement include Kathy Kiely, a 43-year old re-entry student who lived in the residence halls with students half her age so she could earn a math degree to teach middle schoolers and Alfredo Coria, a communications major, who hopes to work in Hispanic media.
Wallace Sommers, 83, of Santa Rosa will pick up a master's degree in history after having earned his bachelor's degree from SSU at age 76.
Special graduation celebrations will be held on Friday, May 26:
The 14th annual African-American Graduation Celebration takes place at 6 p.m. on Friday in the Cooperage. Graduating students receive their bachelor's or master's degrees the next day, May 27. The African-American Graduation Celebration is an opportunity for the University to acknowledge the achievements of African-American students and allow the students to thank their families, friends, faculty and mentors.
This year's Raza Graduation takes place at 5 p.m. on Friday in the Everet B. Person Theatre. The ceremony includes cultural music, keynote speakers, and a unique opportunity for the graduates to thank the individuals who have assisted them in obtaining their degree.
The commencement ceremonies will also be available through a live Web cast. For further information, visit the Commencement 2006 Web site located at www.sonoma.edu/uaffairs/commencement/.
