SARASOTA, Fla. (April 24, 2019) – The University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee will celebrate its spring commencement on Monday, May 6, at 6:30 p.m., at the Bradenton Area Convention Center, 1 Haben Blvd., Palmetto. Of the 297 candidates expected to graduate from USFSM’s four colleges – Liberal Arts & Social Sciences, Business, Science & Mathematics, and Hospitality & Tourism Leadership – 277 are baccalaureate candidates and 20 are master’s degree candidates. Of the total, about 200 are expected to participate in the exercise. Among the candidates for graduation are Lukas Oest, a marketing student who emigrated from Germany as a teenager to seek a better life in the United States; Anya Pardy, a mother of six who recently received a full scholarship to Stetson University College of Law; and Gustavo Delgado, who came here as a boy when his family emigrated from Colombia. Delgado will receive a dual degree in accounting and finance. Regional Chancellor Dr. Karen Holbrook will represent USF Sarasota-Manatee at the ceremony and USF System President Dr. Judy Genshaft will preside. Phillip Wagner, PhD, core curriculum coordinator and director of general education, will serve as ceremony reader. USFSM Faculty Senate President Michael Gillespie, PhD, will bear the University Mace. Jay Riley, director of business outreach and engagement, will serve as processional announcer and Logan Mies, a student at USF’s College of the Arts, will perform the National Anthem and USF Alma Mater. Also at the ceremony, special awards will be presented to Stephen Rushton, PhD (Outstanding Professor), Lukas Oest (Outstanding Graduate) and Cassandra Benjamin (Golden Bull Service and Outstanding Leadership Award). MBA graduate John Holdway is this year’s Paul Searls Webecke Award winner. Holdway graduated in December 2018. ### |
About USF Sarasota-Manatee (USFSM) USF Sarasota-Manatee is a regional campus of the University of South Florida system, offering the prestige of a nationally ranked research university with the convenience of a hometown location, including classes in Manatee and Sarasota counties, Venice and online. USFSM is ideal for those interested in pursuing a baccalaureate or master’s degree, professional certification, or continuing education credit in a small, personal setting with distinguished faculty and a dynamic curriculum of more than 40 academic programs. Website: www.usfsm.edu. |