Grad

#UCNextLevelGrads: Celebrating Spring 2020 Graduates


Written by Chris Pasion, graduate assistant to The Graduate School.

A pair of graduating doctoral students next to one of their advisors.

Spring 2020 graduates, your celebration continues on Saturday, June 27th at 10 a.m.!

The Graduate School is partnering with the Graduate Student Government (GSG) to commemorate graduating members of our community with a celebratory video event. This video is our way of saying farewell and congratulations on all your hard work and achievements from your time here at UC!

A graduating doctoral student sitting on a bench with her four children.

"I gave birth to my fourth child and celebrated my ten year wedding anniversary all while completing my final semester of my doctorate AND nurse educator certification." -Jennifer Barbee-Crim, DNP

The video will consist of a slideshow montage of  students who submitted photos and quotes that detail their accomplishments in their program (see photo to the left for an example), as well as a few words from our distinguished speakers: Raj Mehta, PhD (Interim Vice Provost for Graduate Studies, Dean of The Graduate School; Vice Provost for International Affairs; Director of UC Honors), Debra Merchant, JD (Vice President for Student Affairs, The Office of the Provost), Patrick Limbach, PhD (Vice President for Research, The Office of Research), Crystal Whetstone, PhD (Department of Political Science, Recipient of the 2020 Presidential Medal of Graduate Student Excellence), and Chris Sullivan, PhD, (Professor and Director of Graduate Studies in the School of Criminal Justice, Recipient of the 2020 Excellence in Mentoring of Doctoral Students Award). 

While this video event is not intended to replace an official commencement ceremony, it is our hope that it will be a good way to celebrate our graduates in a way that is appropriate for our current, socially-distanced circumstances. The video will launch on the Celebrating Spring 2020 Graduates webpage at 10 a.m. on Saturday, June 27th. You can also follow along and participate on social media at #UCNextLevelGrads!