Commencement 2013

 Everything you need to know about Commencement 20133
Schedule of Events | Notes from College Marshal, Business Office and Registrar | Commencement Day Info | Baccalaureate | Contacts

Congratulations to the Class of 2013!

This is the day that you've all been working toward. The information below should serve as your guide to making this day special for you, your family and your friends.

General Schedule of Events

The following events have been scheduled for the Graduating Class of 2013, their families and guests, with the faculty and administrators:

Friday, May 17

Baccalaureate at Virginia Beach United Methodist Church, 212 – 19th Street, Virginia Beach, VA
7:30 p.m., Speaker: The Rev. Gregory B. West, Chaplain of Virginia Wesleyan College
7:10 p.m., a pre-service concert will be held in the sanctuary.

Saturday, May 18
Commencement in the Convocation Center, Jane P. Batten Student Center
Doors to the Convocation Center will open at 10:00 a.m. General seating for graduation is first come, first served.
1:001 a.m., Commencement.  Speaker: Terrence D. Jones, President Emeritus, Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts
12:30 p.m., Reception. Graduates will meet family, friends, and faculty and staff members following the ceremony at the reception. Reception is located in Boyd Dining Center.

Notes for Graduating Seniors from the College Marshal, Dr. Sally Shedd

 

Mandatory Rehearsals

All students intending to participate in the graduation must attend a rehearsal. If it is impossible to do so, it is particularly important that you contact Dr. Shedd via Humanities Division Secretary, Leslie Hines by telephone at 757.455.3255, or via e-mail at ljhines@vwc.edu.

Two rehearsals for commencement exercises are scheduled for your convenience; you need attend only one. The main rehearsal will take place at 12:00 p.m. Wednesday, May 15 in the C-MAC of the Jane P. Batten Student Center. The make-up rehearsal will be held at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, May 15 in the C-MAC. You will not need to bring your cap and gown to the rehearsal.

 

Tickets

No tickets are required to attend commencement at Virginia Wesleyan College. Seating is open - first come, first available.

 

Commencement Day Instruction for Graduating Seniors

Please note that graduates must be in the C-MAC of the Jane P. Batten Student Center no later than 10:00 a.m. on Commencement Day (Saturday, May 18) to prepare for the procession. Bring your cap and gown to the gym, but do not bring purses or similar items of value. There is no safe place to leave them during the ceremony.

Following the ceremony, graduates and faculty members will process to the C-MAC of the Jane P. Batten Student Center. Diploma pick up will take place in the C-MAC following Commencement.  Graduates may retain their caps and gowns as a keepsake.

Following the ceremony, family and friends of graduates should travel to Boyd Dining Center to meet graduates and enjoy refreshments.

 

Policy on Commencement Attire for Graduating Seniors

Guidelines for appropriate attire at Commencement have been established by the Commencement Committee so as to maintain the dignity suitable for the occasion and to avoid embarrassment to the College, the graduates, and their families. Black academic gowns and mortar boards are the dress of the day, complemented by dark skirts, dresses, or dress pants and black dress shoes for women and dark dress pants and black shoes and socks for men. Flip-flops, tennis shoes, bare feet and shorts are unacceptable.

In accordance with the national code on academic regalia, no personal adornments of any kind are to be worn on the cap, gown, or hood. This includes badges, corsages, and lettering of any kind. Religious-based head wear should be a solid dark color.

 

Policy on Graduation Honor Cords
(Adopted 3-21-2011; revised 3-15-2012)

Graduating seniors may wear up to five (5) graduation cords, with each cord to represent one of the following honors, memberships, and/or academic distinctions:

• Latin honors (summa cum laude, magna cum laude, cum laude);
• Membership in an academic honor society, including Honors & Scholars (see the list in #4 below);
• Presidential Scholar
• Wesleyan Scholar
• Membership in PORTfolio
• Study Abroad

The graduation cord must be either the unaltered specific approved cord of the honor society or the generic cord supplied by the Office of Academic Affairs.

1. The advisor of an honor society whose members have cords should submit for the approval of the President of Student Government Association a sample of the cord to be worn at graduation. The submission should be made on or before Friday, April 26 to the Office of the Dean of Students (Dr. Keith Moore, Batten 005).
2. If an honor society or other designated group does not have cords, the Office of Academic Affairs (210 Clarke Hall) will supply a single generic or "unity" cord, in Marlin colors, to graduating members. The honor society advisor should submit to Mrs. Judy Tinsley, by April 29, a list of members who will need the unity cord. Please note that Academic Affairs will supply no more than one cord to any graduating senior. Unity cords will be distributed by Student Government representatives at commencement rehearsals. Please note that Study Abroad students can wear the unity cord, but not a Study Abroad sash.
3. Any student who will be wearing cords for commencement must bring her or his cords to the commencement rehearsal for approval by representatives from the Student Government Association. Cords must be checked in at rehearsals in order to be worn at commencement. Students will be instructed at rehearsals on the appropriate way to wear their cords. Student Government Association representatives will perform spot checks to make sure the cords are worn appropriately on the day of commencement.
4. Virginia Wesleyan College recognizes the following Academic Honor societies:
   • Alpha Kappa Delta (Sociology)
   • Alpha Phi Sigma (Criminal Justice)
   • Alpha Psi Omega (Theatre)
   • Alpha Sigma Lambda (Adult Honors)
   • Beta Beta Beta (Biology)
   • Chi Alpha Sigma (Athletic Academic Honors)
   • Delta Phi Alpha (German)
   • Eta Sigma Phi  (Greek/Latin)
   • Gamma Sigma Alpha (Greek)
   • Gamma Sigma Epsilon (Chemistry)
   • Honors and Scholars Association (Academic Achievement)
   • Kappa Delta Pi (Education)
   • Lambda Pi Eta (Communication)
   • Omicron Delta Kappa (Leadership & Scholarship)
   • Order of Omega (Greek)
   • Phi Alpha Theta (History)
   • Phi Eta Sigma (Freshman Honors)
   • Pi Delta Phi (French)
   • Pi Sigma Alpha (Political Science)
   • PORTfolio
   • Psi Chi (Psychology)
   • Rho Lambda (Panhellenic)
   • Rho Phi Lambda (Recreation & Leisure)
   • Sigma Beta Delta (Business, Management & Administration)
   • Sigma Delta Pi (Spanish)
   • Sigma Tau Delta (English)
   • Sigma Zeta (Science & Mathematics)
   • The Society for Collegiate Journalists (Journalism)
   • Theta Alpha Kappa (Religious Studies/Theology)

From the Business Office

Caps and gowns will be available in the Business Office beginning Monday, May 13 once you have cleared your account.  You are requested to pay any account balance you may have due at the Business Office during regular business hours prior to 12:00 p.m. on Friday, May 10.  This year caps and gowns may be kept by the graduates as a keepsake. 

Following the ceremony, all graduates will process to the C-MAC in the Jane P. Batten Student Center, where you will pick up your diploma.   Students with financial holds on their account will not receive their diploma until the hold is cleared by the Business Office and/or Financial Aid Office.

Any student who received a Stafford Loan (Subsidized or Unsubsidized) is required to complete an exit counseling session prior to graduation.  To complete the exit counseling, please log in to www.studentloans.gov with the same PIN number you used to sign your Master Promissory Note and FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid).  You will be given information on your loan to read and then there is a short quiz at the end that must be completed before we can give you credit for the exit counseling.  More information on exit counseling will be mailed to you from the Financial Aid office.  Should you have difficulty completing the exit counseling or have questions, please contact us at 757.455.3345 or finaid@vwc.edu.

Any student who has received a Perkins Loan while enrolled at Virginia Wesleyan College must complete an exit counseling session prior to graduation.   To complete the exit online please go to www.mycampusloan.com.  Once there, follow the instructions to complete the exit.  Go to "View my Account" and go to E exit.  More information concerning this important matter will be sent by email and to campus mailboxes for resident students or mailed home for commuters.  Please call Ms. Dely Johnson at 757.455.3286 with any questions.

 

From the Registrar

Potential August graduates (students who have at most two courses remaining to be completed by the end of the spring semester of their graduating year) may petition the Registrar for approval to "walk" in the May ceremony. The specifics of the Two-Course Rule are listed under "Graduation Requirements" on the Registrar's home page. The petition form is called "Participation in Commencement Exercises" and will be automatically sent to your VWC mailbox prior to mid-April. Complete the form and return it to the Office of the Registrar. Summer registration must be completed before approval can be granted. The Registrar's Office can be reached by calling 757.455.3358.

Commencement Day General Announcements

Doors to the Convocation Hall in the Jane P. Batten Student Center will open at 10:00 a.m. No tickets are required for commencement, and seating is open.

Accessibility:  If you need to drop off elderly guests or persons with disabilities at the door of the Jane P. Batten Student Center, please inform security personnel of that fact. You will be directed to the front of the Center for the drop-off. Please move your vehicle to the parking lot as quickly as possible to clear the drop-off area.  There will be designated space on the floor for guests in wheelchairs.  For the hearing impaired, the commencement ceremony will be signed.

The Scribner Bookstore:  Will be open on Commencement Day from 10:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m.  VWC diploma frames and other college memorabilia will be available for purchase.

Commencement Photographs: Candid Color Photography will photograph each graduate crossing the stage. Professional photos will be  available for purchase online at www.candidcolor.net (Enter the login code that will be printed on your commencement booklet.)  Please do not approach the stage to take your own photographs as this may interfere with the work of the photographers.

Baccalaureate Service Information

A Baccalaureate Service will be held at 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 17 at Virginia Beach United Methodist Church on 212 – 19th Street in Virginia Beach.

Directions to Baccalaureate Service at Virginia Beach United Methodist Church

From Virginia Wesleyan College, turn left on Wesleyan Drive. Take Wesleyan Drive to Northampton Boulevard and turn left at the light. Take I-64E to I-264E (to Virginia Beach/Oceanfront). Continue on I-264 about 13 miles to the end of the Expressway (on 21st Street). Turn right on Pacific Avenue. Go two blocks to 19th Street. The Church is on the left-hand side of Pacific Avenue. The Church phone number is 757.428.7727

Parking Information for Baccalaureate Service

Church parking is available at 18th Street and 19th Street between Pacific and Atlantic. Additional parking is available in the Municipal lot across Pacific Avenue.

Hotel Accommodations

A variety of hotels and restaurants are located in the Norfolk and Virginia Beach area. Information about these facilities and other recreational opportunities in the area may be obtained at http://www.vwc.edu/visit-campus/local-accommodations.php or by calling the Virginia Beach Visitor Information Center at 800.822.3224.

Additional questions?

Questions regarding academic concerns should be directed to the Office of the Registrar, 757.455.3358.
Questions regarding caps and gowns, the Baccalaureate service, and settling your Virginia Wesleyan account should be directed to Elaine Aird in the Business Office at 757.455.3310.  Graduation announcements, diploma frames and other college memorabilia may be ordered online at www.vwc.edu/bookstore/graduation..
Questions regarding senior week activities should be directed to Jenn Mitchell in Student Activities, 757.233.8785.
Questions regarding commencement rehearsal and ceremony should be directed to the College Marshal, Dr. Sally Shedd, via Leslie Hines, Humanities Division Secretary, at 757.455.3255.