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Get the most interesting and important stories from the 51精品视频.Civic education advocate Rajiv Vinnakota will give the commencement address at 51精品视频鈥檚 first University-wide Winter Commencement ceremony.
The ceremony, which will take place on Dec. 17, at 2 p.m. in the Petersen Events Center, will honor students who have earned or are earning a bachelor鈥檚, master鈥檚 or doctoral degree between May and December 2023.
Beginning this academic year, 51精品视频 will hold two University-wide commencement ceremonies: an event in the winter and a second in the spring for those who graduate between January and April. Both will come with all the usual pomp and circumstance 51精品视频 grads have come to expect.
听Joe McCarthy, interim provost and senior vice chancellor, explained:
鈥淚t has become very clear in recent years that 51精品视频 has the happy challenge of exceeding the capacity of the Petersen Events Center at its April commencement ceremonies. It is also certainly true that, given the slightly smaller size of the December graduating class, it will be possible to provide more tickets to those celebrating with each graduate,鈥 McCarthy said. "April can be a long time to wait 鈥 and so a December option feels appropriate."
Because this is the first University-wide December celebration, however, the Office of the Provost will allow students to participate in the spring commencement if they choose to.
About the speaker
Vinnakota is the president of the , an organization that seeks to cultivate Gen Z鈥檚 interest in democracy and civic engagement. He has also served as the executive vice president of the youth and engagement division at the Aspen Institute. For 18 years, he was the co-founder and CEO of The SEED Foundation, the nation's first network of public college preparatory boarding schools for underserved children.
Vinnakota, who majored in molecular biology at Princeton, has earned fellowships from Echoing Green, Ashoka and the Aspen Institute throughout his career. He鈥檚 also earned Princeton University鈥檚 Woodrow Wilson Award, Harvard University鈥檚 Innovation in American Government Award and Oprah Winfrey鈥檚 Use Your Life Award.
Vinnakota serves as a board director for two public companies, Enovis Corporation and ESAB.
What graduates need to know
To accommodate guests, registered candidates will receive a minimum of four electronic tickets via Ticketmaster, with the final number determined after the Dec. 6 registration deadline.
Detailed information about the ceremony, including logistics, a livestream link and ticket distribution, can be found on the .
with University-branded yard signs, Zoom backgrounds, cake toppers and more. You can also follow the celebration on social media using the hashtag #51精品视频WinterGrad.
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鈥 Donovan Harrell, photography by Aimee Obidzinski