Tuesday, October 16, 2001

Spring graduation moved downtown
By Jacque Petersell
Staff Reporter

Seniors graduating in May won’t be walking across a stage at Daniel-Meyer Coliseum.

Spring Commencement will be moved downtown to the Fort Worth Convention Center, said Larry Lauer, vice chancellor for marketing and communication. The decision was made in early October by an commencement task force of administrators and faculty members, Lauer said.

Surveys were sent to graduating seniors and faculty members in September asking them to choose between moving the ceremony to the convention center, which seats approximately 12,000 people, or limiting the guests and keeping it at Daniel-Meyer, which seats a little more than 8,000 people.

Lauer said the majority of student responses showed they preferred to move the ceremony off campus and have an unlimited number of guests.

“This is a family occasion for graduates,” he said. “It was clear that the students felt commencement without restrictions (on the number of guests) was the primary focus.”

Laura Johnston, a senior art history major, said she didn’t vote in the survey, but she still favors moving commencement off campus.

“Being on campus isn’t that important to me,” she said. “It’s more important to be able to invite my family and friends.”

Registrar Patrick Miller was unavailable to give the number of students who replied to the survey. Provost William Koehler said the amount of information gathered was adequate, but not overwhelming.

“The response (from students) was adequate enough to be statistically significant, but the response did not seem to indicate a burning issue with a large number of seniors,” Koehler said.

Lauer said there were varying opinions on the surveys. Some students said by moving commencement off campus, the ceremony would lose the TCU feel, he said.

“Some people would like it on campus because the campus experience is important (to commencement),” Lauer said.

Lauer said there are ways to make the Convention Center look and feel like TCU, such as decorating the area in purple and white.

Koehler said a reception will still be held at the Dee J. Kelly Alumni and Visitors Center before the ceremony.

Johnston said commencement won’t lose the on-campus feel when it is moved to the convention center.

“You don’t have to be at TCU to have the TCU spirit or feeling,” she said. “Wherever the people are, that is where the spirit is.”

Koehler said there wasn’t disagreement among committee members to move commencement off campus. He said he saw differences in how students and faculty voted. Students voted to move commencement while faculty voted to keep it on campus, he said.

Koehler said this decision only affects Spring Commencement. Because of the smaller number of graduates, Fall Commencement will still be held at Daniel-Meyer, he said. After commencement this spring, the task force will evaluate and problems that may arise, Koehler said.

Jacque Petersell
j.s.petersell@student.tcu.edu