UT’s undergraduate commencement and graduate hooding ceremonies will be held December 14-15.
Graduate hooding will take place at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, December 14, and undergraduate commencement will take place at 9 a.m. on Friday, December 15. Both events will be held in Thompson-Boling Arena.
The university will award 1,170 undergraduate degrees, 654 graduate degrees, six law degrees, and three veterinary medicine degrees. ROTC cadets also will be commissioned during the undergraduate ceremony.
For more information about the ceremonies, visit the commencement website.
Undergraduate Commencement
Jon Meacham, a Pulitzer Prize–winning writer, editor, and scholar, will receive an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from the College of Arts and Sciences during commencement. He also will address the graduates.
The university will recognize this notable Tennessean, who brings honor to the state through his accomplishments and his commitment to the public good.
A native of Chattanooga and graduate of Sewanee: The University of the South, Meacham is currently the executive editor and executive vice president of Random House Publishing. He has been the editor of Newsweek and a writer for the New York Times and Washington Post. He is a fellow of the Society of American Historians and has served as a distinguished visiting professor of political science at Vanderbilt University.
Meacham, who lives in Nashville, makes regular television appearances. From May 2010 to April 2011, he was co-host with Alison Stewart of Need to Know on PBS. He is also a frequent guest on MSNBC’s Morning Joe and has appeared multiple times on HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher. He is a frequent panelist on CNN programs such as Don Lemon Tonight and Anderson Cooper 360.
Three of his five books have been number one on the New York Times best-seller list: American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House, Franklin and Winston: An Intimate Portrait of an Epic Friendship, and Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power.
He was awarded a Pulitzer Prize in 2009 for American Lion.
Graduate Hooding
Kerri Ann Considine, a postdoctoral lecturer in UT’s Department of English, will speak at the graduate hooding ceremony, where master’s, Specialist in Education, and doctoral degrees will be conferred.
Considine’s research focuses on dramatic literature, theatre, and performance studies. In addition to teaching in UT Departments of English and Theatre, she has worked with the Clarence Brown Theatre as a dramaturg—one who assists with the research and development of plays—for several productions, including Top Girls and The Crucible from the 2016–17 season. Last year she held a graduate fellowship in the UT Humanities Center.
Parking and Security
Graduates and their guests may park free in university student parking areas throughout campus but should avoid parking in staff parking areas.
The arena’s large-event security protocol will be enforced at both ceremonies. Guests may enter the arena with one clear plastic bag no larger than 12 inches by 6 inches by 12 inches.
Smoking, including e-cigarettes, is prohibited inside the arena at all times.
For more information on what items are allowed and prohibited in the arena as well as the security policy, visit the commencement website or contact the Thompson-Boling Arena management office at 865-974-0953.
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CONTACT:
Lola Alapo (865-974-3993, lalapo@utk.edu)