ALLENDALE, Mich. — Grand Valley State University’s 2021 graduates will have two ways to celebrate this year: a virtual commencement ceremony along with an in-person opportunity the next day to cross a stage and have their picture taken, a news release said Monday.
The virtual commencement ceremony will be held April 30 at 7 p.m.
An in-person Laker Graduation Celebration is planned for Saturday, May 1, in the Fieldhouse Arena on the Allendale campus.
During the April 30 virtual ceremony, President Philomena V. Mantella and Maria Cimitile, provost and executive vice president for academic and student affairs, will confer degrees and lead students in turning their tassels.
The academic deans will welcome each individual college and the names of graduates will be displayed.
“Our graduates have exemplified hard work and persevered through current challenges,” Mantella said. “Although we would have loved to offer the full tradition of commencement, we are grateful that this year we have the opportunity to preserve the time-honored commencement tradition of graduates crossing the stage in front of their supporters, in-person and virtually.”
For the May 1 in-person celebration, graduates will be assigned a time slot during which they can walk through the arena and cross the stage and have their picture taken.
Each graduate will be allowed to have four guests attend in-person, though a livestream will also be available so others can watch from home.
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